Community Influenza Collaborative: Prevention and Surveillance

The past several influenza seasons have presented many challenges for both the public and private health care sector. Issues regarding influenza planning, vaccine availability, adherence to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines, and mixed messages to the general public first became of concern during the 2000-2001 influenza season and have continued since. A community plan was needed to address these growing concerns, a plan that included input and discussion from all parties involved. The Community Influenza Collaboration, known locally as the "flu committee," was brought together in the fall of 2000 to specifically address the current challenges facing the community regarding the late delivery of flu vaccine.

The initial goal of this group was to initiate communication between the private and public health care sectors in regards to influenza prevention planning. Once that communication was established and barriers were identified and addressed, the group identified the following goals: develop a common message for the general public regarding influenza vaccination, educate all health care providers regarding CDC influenza vaccination guidelines and encourage them to adhere to these guidelines, establish consistency in timing for vaccination clinics throughout the community and consistency in vaccination costs, and develop a local influenza surveillance system.

The outcomes of this collaborative have gone far beyond meeting the established goals. This group, which has grown over the past years, has become the cornerstone for community planning regarding communicable disease prevention and control. What started as a small group of nurses concerned about influenza planning has grown into a varied group of health care professionals dealing with communicable diseases, smallpox preparedness, SARS planning and public health emergency planning.