Though most healthcare professionals are aware that the flu vaccine is the single-most effective means of fighting the spread of influenza, less than 60 percent of all healthcare professionals (HCPs) are vaccinated annually for flu, reports the U.S. Department of Health and Human Resources. An alarming statistic for patients with compromised immune systems, the elderly, the pregnant and the very young. To bring the number of vaccinated HCPs up, The Joint Commission is requiring all accredited healthcare organizations to implement an annual influenza vaccination program for licensed independent practitioners and staff by July 1, 2012. The objective of the new requirement, explained in detail in The Joint Commission’s R3Report, is to meet 90 percent practitioner coverage by 2020 and to track the performance of the requirement through accredited health care organizations. “Increasing flu vaccination rates for healthcare workers is important not only to help protect themselves, but also to reduce the risk of flu infection for patients or individuals served,� said Kelly L. Podgorny, D.N.P., M.S., CPHQ, RN, project director, Standards and Survey Methods Department, Division of Healthcare Quality Evaluation, The Joint Commission. Vice President of Recruitment for American Traveler Staffing Professionals, Mary Kay Hull, [+]

The Bureau of Labor Statistics has good news for America’s unemployed healthcare workers. Of the 19,200 jobs add to employment rosters in November, 8,000 were hospital jobs and 7,400 were reported in ambulatory care settings. Nursing and residential healthcare jobs increased by 3,800. Starting in October, leading travel nurse agency, American Traveler, saw a spike in monthly nurse job postings and allied health positions, indicating an uptick in client side demand, said a company official, bringing to an end the worst two years in healthcare employment in over a decade. Of the Bureau’s published list of 30 occupations projected to have the most job growth through 2018, registered nurses, therapists and physicians rise to the top, along with home health aides, personal care attendants and nurses aides. Though the increase in healthcare jobs promises to put thousands of caregivers back to work, job seekers face extreme competition, as nurses and therapists laid off during the recession look to get their jobs back. American Traveler has staffed over 75% of the USA's best hospitals as rated by US News & World Report. Want to learn more about available nursing jobs and therapist positions at American Traveler? [+]