Economic Impact of Flu
   
posted : 17/11/2004  

 

Can You Afford The Effects Of Flu In The Workplace?

Are you prepared for flu? As the following information shows, flu can hit your company's productivity hard. Protecting your employees' health with flu vaccination makes economic sense.

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Please click here to use the Solvay Influtec calculator which shows you the economic impact a seasonal influenza outbreak can have on your company and how an in-house vaccination programme can prevent economic losses.

The Influtec calculator allows you to enter your Company's labour costs along with the number of people in your workforce which will give you a tailored calculation as to how much your company can save with a flu vaccination campaign.

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Facts about Influenza in the Workplace

  • Affects 5-30% of the population each year.1
  • Major cause of absenteeism from work during the winter season.2
  • Symptoms can be debilitating - sore throat, fever, chills and severe muscle aches.
  • On average, these symptom last around seven days.3
  • Everyone can catch influenza, not only "high risk" groups.

Protect your workforce through vaccination

  • Effective in protecting people from influenza
  • Quick and easy to administer
  • Minimal side-effects
  • Cost-effective for the working population
  • Claims are supported by published literature. 4,5,6

Reasons to vaccinate your workforce

  • On average, workers with influenza have between one and five days off work.4
  • Those who remain at work, or go back before their symptoms have gone, have productivity reduced by as much as 50%.4
  • Vaccination can reduce influenza-related absence by up to 70%.

Cost Benefits of vaccinating your workforce

  • The cost of influenza to employers can be significant, including that of reduced productivity, absence, and the need for temporary staff or overtime.
  • Business services are disrupted and projects delayed.
  • Often, the cost of vaccination is outweighed by its savings.
  • Investment in vaccination can be expected to produce a positive return.

Ways to encourage your employees to get vaccinated

  • Make it accessible through on-site provision.
  • Provide it free of charge.
  • Provide information on its safety and effectiveness.
  • Emphasise that it benefits their families as well as their work colleagues.

Key points to remember

  • Everyone can get influenza.
  • Influenza can result in significant costs to employers.
  • Vaccination is effective and easy to administer.
  • Cost of vaccination is often less than the cost of influenza.
  • Investing in workforce vaccination is a positive move.

References:

  1. World Health Organisation. 2000. Weekly Epidemiological record 2000;75:281-288.
  2. Dille JH. 1999. A worksite influenza immunization program. Impact on lost work days, health care utilization, and health care spending. AAOHN J. 1999 Jul;47(7):301-9
  3. Maukopf JA, Cates SC, Griffin AD. 1999. A pharmacoeconomic model for the treatment of influenza. Pharmacoeconomics 1999; 16 Suppl 1:73-84
  4. Nichol KL. 2001. Cost benefit analysis of a strategy to vaccinate healthy working adults against influenza. Arch Intern Med 2001 161(5): 749-59
  5. Stas J, Cook S, Wolfe T, Baumgardner G, Salsberry P. 2001. An employee influenza immunisation initiative in a large university managed care setting. Journal of Managed Care Pharmacy 2001: 7 (3); 219-223
  6. Das Gupta R. and Guest J. 2002. PharmacoEconomics 2002; 20(7):475-486.