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Dear Team Members,

Many of you have had questions about our plans for administering annual flu shots, bivalent COVID-19 boosters, and monkeypox vaccines. Below is a summary of where and when vaccinations will be offered.

2022-2023 Flu Vaccination Program

• Team Members | Starts Sept. 26 | Details can be found on the Employee Health Influenza 2022-2023 Season website. FAQs for team members will be posted on the Employee Health website soon and announced in an upcoming UVA Health Update.
• In-patients | Starts Sept. 27, | UVA Medical Center will again use a team-based approach to flu vaccinations. Our goal is to achieve a 95% compliance rate for screening and offering flu vaccines during each admission.  
• Outpatients | Starts Sept. 20, | Ambulatory clinics will provide vaccinations to patients by appointment or during a visit scheduled for another purpose. Our goal is to achieve a 90% compliance rate in screening and offering flu vaccines during each clinic encounter. Flu shot appointments can be made through MyChart or by contacting a primary care clinic directly.
• Community Members | Starts Sept. 20 | Our retail pharmacies will begin offering flu shots to the public on a walk-in basis. No appointment is necessary. Please contact a pharmacy associate for details.

Bivalent COVID-19 Boosters 

• Team members | Starts Sept. 21 | Pfizer bivalent boosters will be available by appointment at Employee Health on Wednesdays and Fridays from 7:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. and can be scheduled by logging onto Vaxtrax. At this time, receipt of boosters will be an option, not a requirement, for team members.
• Outpatients/Community Members | Starts Week of Sept. 19 | Qualifying ambulatory clinics and four of our outpatient pharmacies (Educational Resource Center, Zion Crossroads, Pantops, and Augusta) will begin offering Pfizer bivalent boosters to individuals 12 years and older. Appointments are required and can be made at clinics and pharmacies by calling 434.297.4829 (Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.) or through MyChart. Appointments can also be made by directly contacting clinics offering booster shots.

Monkeypox Vaccinations 

Monkeypox Vaccinations 

• Team Members | As of today, a small number of team members who work in the medical lab have been proactively vaccinated. Anyone who has been exposed to or at high risk of infection should contact the Blue Ridge Health District or their primary care provider for evaluation and possible need for testing. [Note: There was an error in previous communications that instructed team members to contact Employee Health if they have been exposed to or are at high risk of monkeypox infection.]*
• Outpatients | Starts Sept. 19 | We will offer the Jynneos vaccine for the prevention of monkeypox at the Infectious Disease Clinic and, by referral, at the COVID and Special Pathogens Clinic. Clinicians can offer vaccination to patients eligible for expanded postexposure prophylaxis (PEP++) by placing an Ambulatory Referral Monkeypox Vaccine order. Patients will require two doses of this vaccine at least 28 days apart. More details about referrals and our monkeypox vaccination activities will be provided soon.

Note: Monkeypox vaccinations are also available at the Blue Ridge Health District (BRHD) for community members who have been exposed to monkeypox or are at high risk of being exposed to it. When appropriate, clinicians can direct patients to the monkeypox vaccine interest survey to register on BRHD website.

As the information above indicates, this promises to be the most complex vaccination season ever experienced at UVA Health. We appreciate everyone’s cooperation and partnership during this busy time.

Sincerely,

Wendy Horton, PharmD, MBA, FACHE
Chief Executive Officer | UVA Medical Center

Reid Adams, MD, FACS
Chief Medical Officer

Kathy Baker, PhD, RN, NE-BC
Chief Nursing Officer

Costi Sifri, MD
Hospital Epidemiologist | UVA Medical Center

*Editor's note: Updated Sept. 16, 2022