Record numbers of frontline health workers in Shropshire receive flu jab – but hundreds are missing out

Having the vaccination not only protects staff from seasonal flu but it means they are less likely to pass on the virus to vulnerable patients.

Public Health England statistics show that 950 of 4,661 frontline workers at the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust were not vaccinated against flu by the end of December.

The trust, which runs Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and Princess Royal Hospital in Telford, had an uptake rate of 79.6 per cent and bosses say a number of incentives have helped the figure to rise from last year.

The uptake at Shropshire Community Health NHS Trust by the end of December was 72.3 per cent, with 372 of 1,343 frontline workers then yet to receive the jab.

The Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital had an uptake of 64.6 per cent, with 491 workers having not received the vaccine.

The national average was 68.5 per cent.

Trusts have financial incentives for staff uptake, receiving full payment if at least 80 per cent have it, and a decreasing amount down to 60 per cent coverage, below which they get nothing.

The target is measured between September and February, and the payment varies depending on the size of the trust’s contract.

SaTH launched its flu campaign in October and staff who had the vaccine received a £3 voucher to redeem in the trust’s coffee shops.

Ambition

It also held a 24-hour 'jabathon' at both hospitals, has a dedicated hotline and bosses say 82.3 per cent of frontline workers have now been vaccinated to date – up from just over 75 per cent in 2018/19.

Dr Arne Rose, medical director at the trust, said: “This is a great response from our staff, as we know that by immunising ourselves against the flu we are protecting ourselves and our patients.

“Our flu team has worked incredibly hard to make having the jab as easy as possible for our staff.

“There are still a number of weeks left to go until the campaign closes, and we are continuing to offer our staff the opportunity to have their jab.”

Jan Ditheridge, chief executive of Shropshire Community Health NHS Trust, which runs community services in the county, said all staff are encouraged to get the jab.

She said: “We have historically been one of the best performing community trusts in the country, and this year we have seen almost 81 per cent of our people get the flu jab so far – exceeding the 80 per cent target set by our regulator, NHS Improvement and NHS England. We will continue to work at it, as our ambition is for all our staff to get their flu jab.”

Stacey-Lea Keegan, interim director of nursing at RJAH, near Oswestry, said the trust had placed "great emphasis" on staff receiving the flu jab and uptake had grown to 67 per cent so far this year – up from 43 per cent in 2017.

However, The Society for Acute Medicine says it is concerning that many NHS staff across England who deal with patients have not been vaccinated.

An NHS spokesman said: "Staff have worked hard to achieve a record level of uptake for the vaccine so far this year, with almost 50,000 more frontline staff choosing to protect themselves, their patients and colleagues from flu.”