Thank you for considering hosting a Flu Shot Clinic in your facility. Helping your residents, staff, and others in your community to be immunized is one of the best things you can do to help keep your residents healthy this flu season.

If your facility chooses to host a flu shot clinic, always connect with a business who employs licensed, registered healthcare professionals such as Registered Nurses and Pharmacists to administer flu vaccines. This will help ensure proper assessments are completed and correct procedures are followed and prevent accidents and other hazardous exposures. 

For more information on promoting flu shots in your facility, visit the Department of Health Services Influenza Resources for Providers: https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/familycare/mcos/immunization.htm

Things to Consider Before Hosting a Flu Shot Clinic

  • Will you offer vaccinations to residents only or will your staff, resident family members, and other community members be able to be immunized? Consider how you will notify people other than residents about your clinic.
  • Does your location have adequate space and privacy? Consider having a room or partition available for privacy.
  • Are participants scheduled for certain time slots or is everyone showing up at once?The event will run smoother if participants show up in small groups versus all at once.
  • Who is administering the vaccines at your clinic?There are various businesses that will travel on-site to provide flu shots such as clinics, pharmacies, and health departments.
  • How will you ensure obtaining consent for those with guardians/activated Power of Attorney for Healthcare (POA-HC)? If members of the community or family of residents can attend, will there be any minors who may be immunized? In many cases, there is a consent form parents, guardians, or POA-HC must fill out prior to immunization. If considering permitting minors to be vaccinated, it is good to verify if there are any age restrictions for the contracted company to immunize minors.
  • How will you ensure that the residents’ healthcare provider is informed of that a vaccination was given? This will help to ensure that a resident is not immunized more than once and is vital information for the resident’s healthcare team to know.

Flu Shot Clinic Provider Selection Considerations

  • Does the flu shot clinic provider have enough vaccines to vaccinate everyone you are expecting?It is important to plan these events months in advance and get a final head count at least two weeks in advance to ensure that there is an adequate number of immunizations available.
  • Is there a minimum number of flu shots that must be administered for the entire clinic? Some providers require that a certain number of people must be signed up for before they will hold the clinic. If you have a smaller facility, permitting staff, family members, and others from the community may help you reach clinic minimums.
  • What insurance companies will the flu shot clinic provider bill?Some flu clinic providers can easily process insurance claims on-site while others must do this manually before the event, making it more difficult for walk-ins to get immunized. It will be helpful to coordinate as many of your resident’s billing prior to the event as possible.
    • Establish a standard process and communication that will be sent to guardians and others who assist residents with billing and insurance. Ensure similar processes are developed for anyone who can obtain a flu shot at your clinic.
  • Does the immunization provider have a patient screening form or medical history form for participants to fill out?If so, it can help the event run smoother if the paper work is completed in advance if allowed.
  • Is there a fee to have a clinic?Some flu shot providers will charge additional fees for the clinic in addition to charging for the individual vaccines. It is important to evaluate the expense involved prior to scheduling the event
  • Will the immunization provider enter information in the Wisconsin Immunization Registry (WIR)? WIR is an internet database that tracks vaccine records for Wisconsin residents and is an important tool to make sure people receive vaccines on time and reduce the time and money it takes to find old vaccine records.
  • Are the immunization provider’s staff trained to determine if there are allergies to the vaccine and in general first aid? Do they have the proper rescue supplies available in case someone has an adverse reaction? Whoever is providing the immunizations should have an emergency plan in place in case a participant has a reaction to the vaccine. Ask the provider for a copy of this. Ensure providers are trained in general first aid and are currently CPR certified.
  • Additional Information on How to Host a Flu Clinic (not an all-inclusive list)

Not sure you are ready to Host A Flu Shot Clinic? Help your residents find places in your community where they can get a flu shot and assist them to get there!

Resources

Centers for Disease Control. (2019). Resources for hosting a vaccination clinic. Retrieved from https://www.churchmutual.com/9446/Flu-Shot-Clinics

Church Mutual Insurance Company. (2019). Flu shot clinics. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/flu/business/hosting-vaccination-clinic.htm