FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Juliette Harris, PR Director at ATC Healthcare
(818) 321-2317
juliette@itgirlpr.com
ATC Healthcare Heeds Australia’s Record-Breaking Flu Season; Preparing Now in the US For Simultaneous Respiratory Viruses
Dr. Fauci warned, “The US Flu May Be Worse Than Normal,” and ATC Healthcare is Getting Prepared
09/14/2022 – Reporting from media and government officials announced that “Australia just experienced its worst flu season in five years, with about three times as many cases as in a normal year, and influenza-like illness has risen in New Zealand as well,” The US typically uses the information from these countries to predict what may come to the US regarding influenza, which remains an unpredictable virus. Additionally, Dr. Anthony Fauci of the National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases just said, “the increases should serve as a warning that the US flu season may be worse than normal, especially as the coronavirus continues to circulate at high levels.”
ATC Healthcare, a leading healthcare staffing company, is jumping into action to support its hospital partners and the healthcare community at large to avoid additional stress and strain on a healthcare community that is already stretched thin.
ATC Healthcare CEO, David Savitsky Quote
“ATC is ready to help our hospital partners and the healthcare community meet the challenges presented by a bad flu season in combination with the continued presence of Covid and the current nursing shortage. We are here as a partner and resource.” Commented CEO David Savitsky
The CEO and his team have implemented a five-step plan to help its partners prepare for this unprecedented health crisis of two simultaneous respiratory viruses impacting simultaneously.
- Conducting extensive recruitment to add up to 2500 more clinicians to its staff
- Reaching out to local facilities to assess their projected needs
- Entering into staffing agreements that cover surges and crises staffing
- Providing additional training to clinicians for treating flu and COVID illness
- Tracking current flu vaccination status of clinicians
Rita Franklin, Senior VP of Nursing, added, “Now that people are gathering again and no longer needing to mask as in the recent past, the flu could return to pre-pandemic levels. What happens in Australia during flu season has historically been a good predictor of what will happen in the US as their flu season runs April to October.”
Predictions are pointing that Covid will peak again in December in conjunction with the typical Influenza season, and these plans need to be in place to save lives.
It is impossible to overstate the burden that healthcare workers experienced during COVID. For many months in 2020, there was no vaccine, but there was also very little understanding of COVID, how it spread, how to treat it, and how to protect yourself from it.
Yet healthcare workers worked nonstop with sick, COVID-positive patients anyways, often doing so without even having PPE available for use due to unprecedented shortages.
This burnout led many hospital-employed nurses to resign in the interest of taking a break, which led many of them to begin working with staffing agencies like ATC, which typically offer much more flexibility and higher pay to medical staff. Fortunately, we have learned a tremendous amount thus far, but adding the compounded unpredictability of the Flu and the high case numbers from Australia, the big takeaway is needing to get people vaccinated, staffed up, and prepared.
About ATC Healthcare
ATC Healthcare is the established leader in healthcare staffing nationwide. ATC empowers world-class care by providing qualified healthcare professionals across disciplines nationwide.
Named among Forbes’ Best Temporary Staffing Firms for 2020, the ATC Healthcare brand provides nurses, LPNs, and certified nursing assistants across many disciplines in more than 65 territories nationwide. ATC Healthcare is Staffing Industry Analysts’ 29th largest healthcare staffing firm in the U.S. and the third largest per diem nurse staffing firm nationwide. ATC provides per diem, contract, and travel assignments nationwide for hospitals, healthcare facilities, and senior living locations, offering support 24 hours a day, seven days a week. For more information, visit atchealthcare.com or email Juliette@itgirlpr.com
Juliette Harris
ItGirl PR
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For more information on partnering with ATC Healthcare for your healthcare staffing needs, open job opportunities, or becoming an ATC franchisee, visit atchealthcare.com