It comes after figures were released that show only one in three
midwives and nurses had the seasonal flu vaccinations last year.
The figures also show the up-take varied wildly at trusts across the country, with some at over 90% and some at less than 10%.
The campaign, which is headed up by
NHS Employers, aims to raise awareness among staff throughout the coming flu season.
Louise Silverton, RCM deputy general secretary, said: ‘This campaign has our full support.
‘We encourage midwives and women to have the vaccine to help stop the spread of the illness in hospital and at home.
‘It
is often difficult for midwives and other healthcare staff to get to
the places where employers are administering the vaccine, because they
work long and unpredictable hours, often in the community away from
where the vaccines are being given.
‘We are pleased to see that NHS Employers is making steps to address this and make it easier.’
The campaign aims to protect as many NHS staff in
England as possible so they do not transmit flu to colleagues, their
families and vulnerable patients.
It also aims to embed staff flu vaccinations in NHS culture.
It will do so using widespread communications to explain why getting the jab is important.
It will also focus on helping to ensure local
arrangements are in place for staff to receive jabs quickly, where and
whenever they are working.
Dean
Royles, director of the NHS Employers, said: ‘We want to help NHS staff
to fight the flu, to protect the services they provide, their families
and their patients.
‘Flu has a hugely negative impact on the NHS and is fatal in too many cases.
‘By
working together we can achieve enough vaccinations to dramatically
reduce the current high risk of flu spreading within the NHS.’
