Influenza outbreak preparedness: lessons from outbreaks in residential care facilities in 2014

Aditya Vyas, Andrew Ingleton, Essi Huhtinen, Kirsty Hope, Zeina Najjar, Leena Gupta
2015 Communicable diseases intelligence quarterly report  
This report describes 6 influenza outbreaks in residential care facilities during the 2014 influenza season in the Sydney Local Health District. Vaccination rates were high among residents (95%) and low among staff (39%). The majority of residents with laboratory confirmed influenza (67%) did not meet the influenza-like illness case definition.Positive influenza specimens were subtyped as H3N2 (40%), H1N1 (5%) or not subtyped (55%). We illustrate the implications of low vaccine effectiveness
more » ... antigenic drift, and provide recommendations for the effective management of future influenza outbreaks.
pmid:26234256 fatcat:iy7h25pmwfc2vl6gze466jcwhe