Overview
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has for several years recommended annual influenza vaccination of all health care professionals and persons in training for health-care professions, including physicians, nurses, other workers in both hospital and outpatient-care settings, and students in these professions who will have contact with patients. The CDC considers annual vaccination one measure of a patient safety quality program and recommends vaccination for all employees who do not have a exception based on medical needs or religious or personal beliefs.
The University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health (SMPH), as an affiliate of UW Health, is committed to being a national leader in health care. To ensure the highest quality of care, all staff and providers need to be effective role models for our patients. For these reasons, all SMPH faculty, staff, and students, including temporary and part-time, are required to receive an influenza vaccination annually, or to submit an appropriate waiver for medical, religious, or personal exemption. Additionally, all volunteers who regularly work in UW Health facilities, contract employees, medical students and students on clinical rotation in UW Health facilities, and other affiliated individuals, are required to receive an influenza vaccination or to complete and submit the appropriate waiver.
Vaccination Requirements
Each year, UW Health Employee Health Services will determine a due date for flu vaccination compliance at the beginning of the flu vaccine season. This deadline will be communicated to all employees well in advance of the due date to allow time for them to arrange a vaccination.
Before the due date, employees must submit documentation of a completed flu shot that includes:
- the employee’s name
- proof that the employee received the vaccination
- if possible, the employee’s Campus ID number (the ID number may be handwritten legibly)
SMPH staff, faculty, and students may choose to receive the vaccination through whatever resource is most convenient for them, including their personal health provider, a UW-Madison campus flu vaccination clinic, or a commercial pharmacy. SMPH employees who are dually employed by UW Health may also receive vaccinations at clinics hosted by UW Health.
Documentation must be emailed to the SMPH HR Compliance team.
Flu Vaccination Clinics on UW-Madison Campus
Flu vaccination clinics are offered at various locations throughout the UW-Madison campus each year. Specific information about dates, costs, and insurance coverage for campus flu clinics can be found on UW University Health Service’s Flu Shots for Students & Employees page.
Waivers
If an employee has a valid medical, religious, or personal reason that prohibits them from receiving a flu vaccination, they may submit an influenza vaccine medical waiver or an influenza vaccine religious belief or personal conviction waiver. New waivers must be submitted before the year’s due date. Waivers will be considered confidential medical information and will not be shared with departments or supervisors. Employees who are exempt from receiving a vaccine should wear a mask when within three (3) feet of patients in patient care areas during influenza season, typically between September and May.
Waivers must be submitted annually.
Additional Information
Individuals who do not receive a vaccination or have a valid waiver on file by the year’s due date will be considered out of compliance and will be referred to the SMPH Associate Dean for Human Resources. Falsification of waivers may be cause for discipline, up to and including termination.