Activity Description
Demonstrate that the MIPS eligible clinician’s practice has maintained or achieved a rate of 100% of office staff staying up to date with COVID vaccines according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/stay-up-to-date.html). Please note that those who are determined to have a medical contraindication specified by CDC recommendations are excluded from this activity.
| Activity ID | Activity Weighting | Sub-Category Name |
|---|---|---|
| IA_ERP_6 | Medium | Emergency Response & Preparedness |
Objective & Validation Documentation
Objective: Achieve or maintain 100% of practice staff up to date with COVID vaccines.
Validation Documentation: Evidence supporting that COVID-19 vaccinations are up to date for clinical and non-clinical office staff, according to current CDC guidelines. Include all of the following elements:
1) Documentation approach – Standardized approach to documenting vaccination status for existing and new employees; AND
2) Employee education – Materials emphasizing the importance of COVID-19 vaccination for all staff in a health care setting; AND
3) Documented process for vaccine administration – Written options for staff who require COVID-19 vaccines to receive vaccination at the practice or at other locations.
Example(s): A practice-wide review indicated that some staff had not received the recommended COVID-19 vaccine doses. The practice educated staff on the importance of COVID-19 vaccination, and provided information on where no-cost vaccines could be obtained.
Information:
• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention includes updated vaccine recommendations, including primary series and boosters, on its website: “Stay Up to Date with Your COVID-19 Vaccines”. (https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/stay-up-to-date.html#:~:text=CDC%20recommends%20COVID-19%20primary,-19%20vaccines%2C%20including%20boosters)
• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention developed educational materials for workplaces to support COVID-19 recommendations. Educational materials about the importance of the COVID-19 vaccine and how the vaccine works are available as free print resources. (https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/communication/print-resources.html?Sort=Date%3A%3Adesc&Audience=General%20Public%20%3E%20Employers%2C%20Business%20Owners%20%26%20Community%20Leaders&Topics=Vaccines&Content%20Type=Print%20resource)
• In this video, Dr. Arthur Caplan, head of the Division of Medical Ethics at NYU Grossman School of Medicine, talks about vaccine hesitancy among US health care workers and outlines the steps health care practices can take to boost vaccination rates among skeptical staff and support a healthy workforce. An audio-only file and a transcript are also available. (https://journalofethics.ama-assn.org/videocast/ethics-talk-covid-19-vaccine-hesitancy-health-care-workforce)