Abstract
The aim of this paper is to analyze the risk of pneumonia during the season of flu among people of 65 years and older who have influenza vaccination compared to those who do not. The role of the nurse in the process of diagnosis and treatment of the patient is described in this study. The research is based on the latest reviews and scientific articles considering the effectiveness and the safety of the vaccine and the causes of pneumonia for older patients. The result of the analysis shows that vaccination significantly lowers the risk of pneumonia and other complications of influenza among older adults. The role of the nurse is also considered to be educational because two-third of patients refuse to make vaccines.
The efficiency and the safety of the influenza vaccination still raise questions and doubts. However, the World Health Organization advances the hypothesis that seasonal influenza vaccination is essential for older adults (World Health Organization, 2015). Some researchers propose the idea that the vaccine might not be so efficient as it is supposed to be. What is more, they pay attention to the lack of experiments and scientific monitoring (Trucchi, Paganino, Orsi, De Florentiis, & Ansaldi, 2015). The problem also consists of the impossibility of excluding the chronic diseases which are common among aged people.
Nurses play a significant role in the treatment of the flu. The first reason for it is that this disease is not considered a serious one, that is why not so much attention is paid to its therapy. Nevertheless, nursing is essential to keep the situation under control and to be able to react immediately in the case of complications (Letley, 2018). Such illnesses as pneumonia are developing rapidly and require competent actions before the intense therapy. Nurses can prevent the complication of the flu by operating correctly and efficiently.
The Specificity of Influenza
Influenza is an acute respiratory infection that is spread all over the world. It is a seasonal disease that is most active in the period from the late autumn up to spring. It has typical symptoms such as fever, sore throat, and cough (Wilhelm, 2018). Adults aged 65 and older are in the group of high risk. The reason for it might be that 35% of the aged people are not protected from the flu with the vaccine (Wilhelm, 2018). The majority of hospitalizations caused by seasonal flu are related to the older patients.
For most people, the flu is a mild illness that supposes some home treatment and, in rare cases, hospitalization for several days. None the less, there are humans that risk to have serious complications caused by influenza. Among them are babies and children up to five years, pregnant women, and people with chronic diseases like problems with the heart or asthma and elder humans (Wilhelm, 2018). About 80% of the deaths from the seasonal flu are related to older people (Wilhelm, 2018). The main reason for it is that the classic symptoms of the flu do not usually appear after the are of 65 (Trucchi et al.,2015). That is why the diagnostics and the treatment are provided too late when the situation becomes critical.
The Role of the Vaccine
The concerns about the effectiveness of the vaccine are not unfounded. The main question that researches face is its safety for the elderly (Trucchi et al.,2015). Their immunizations rates are poor, which means that the effectiveness of the vaccination becomes lower because the body does not react to the new antibodies (Wilhelm, 2018). The problem is also in the methodology of gathering essential information. Most of the ways of analysis consist of studying retrospective researchers (Trucchi et al.,2015). It makes the probability of the mistake higher because the conclusions could not be verified in real time with the patients.
Nowadays, there are many studies that concentrate on the problem of age-related immunosenescence. Several new vaccines have been approved by the specialized governmental departments. Among them is “Fluad”, which was made specifically for older adults. This vaccine passed all clinical trials during the 2016-2017 years and is used in the USA and Europe. The scientists from National Foundation of Infectious Disease claim that at the time of the clinical tests the adjuvant influenza vaccine performed better than the standard vaccine for all three flu strains (A/H1N1, A/H3N2, and B) (Schaffner, Gravenstein, Hopkins, & Jernigan, 2016). Nevertheless, the test period is too short to provide the final result.
It is important to mention that the problem is not only in the effectiveness of the vaccine but also in the level of trust and knowledge among the elderly. One-third of them in the USA do not want to have a vaccination (Wilhelm, 2018). Informational support is essential for the solution of the issue. Family nurses are among the most reliable persons for older people, that is why they also should be aware of all the latest developments. Nurses should be ready to explain in details why the vaccine is important and how it can help to overcome the illness.
The vaccination does not guarantee the impossibility of getting flu during its season. However, it lowers the risk of having complications like pneumonia. The research held in 2018 showed that among adults who were hospitalized because of influenza, the patients with a vaccine were 59% less transferred to the ICU than the others (“People 65 Years and Older & Influenza,” 2019). Therefore, the importance of the vaccine is not only in preventing the illness but also in making the risk of pneumonia and death much lower in case of illness.
The Risk of Pneumonia
Pneumonia is one of the most common complications of influenza. Scientists advance the hypothesis that vaccination plays a significant role for adults. They compared the level of deaths with different causes and the risk of hospitalization of patients with pneumonia. Their conclusion was that there are remarkable reductions in the risk for vaccinated people of 50% for general mortality and around 30% for pneumonia hospitalization the risk (Trucchi et al.,2015). It is a proof of the necessity of being vaccinated not only by older people but by all adults.
Pneumonia is the most dangerous for people of the age of 75 or older, who have problems with lunges or asthma. The patients with this disease needed hospitalization with mechanical ventilation much more often (18% vs. 5%) than other patients (Wilhelm, 2018). It is important to mention that there is a special pneumococcal vaccine that is made for people of the age 65 and older. It fights with pneumonia-related diseases like bloodstream infections and meningitis (“What are the benefits of flu vaccination?”, 2019). It is possible to get it with the influenza vaccine.
The last researches show that the influenza vaccine lowers the risk of pneumonia and other respiratory diseases during the flu period among people of 65 years and older. The vaccination helps not only to reduce the risk of complications but also prevents influenza itself. The difference in the level of hospitalized patients with flu who require intensive care unit and mechanical ventilation and who have been vaccinated illustrates the effectiveness of the cure. Nurses play a significant role not only in the process of diagnostics and treatment of the patient but also in informing people about the necessity of the vaccine for their own health and well-being.
References
Letley, L. (2018). Flu immunization in England: helping nurses to protect patients. Nursing Times, 114, 9-18.
People 65 Years and older & Influenza. (2019). Web.
Schaffner, W., Gravenstein, S., Hopkins, R., & Jernigan, D. (2016). Reinvigorating influenza prevention in US adults aged 65 years and older. Infectious Diseases in Clinical Practice, 24(6), 303-309.
Trucchi, C., Paganino, C., Orsi, A., De Florentiis, D., & Ansaldi, F. (2015). Influenza vaccination in the elderly: why are the overall benefits still hotly debated? Journal of Preventive Medicine and Hygiene, 56(1), E37-E43.
What are the benefits of flu vaccination?(2019). Web.
Wilhelm, M. (2018). Influenza in older patients: A call to action and recent updates for vaccinations. The American Journal of Managed Care, 24(2), S15-S24.
World Health Organization. (2015). Vaccine effectiveness estimates for seasonal influenza vaccines.Web.