Partner Success Stories

Submit Your Success Story!

Submit the following information to fluinbox@cdc.gov to have your success story featured here!

  • Write a 250 word (maximum) description of your success story including name of organization, any collaborating organizations, when the event took place (either last flu season or this flu season only), and any evaluation taken from the activity.
  • Include a minimum of (1-2) pictures of the event. Acceptable file formats include JPG, GIF, and PNG. Preferred size at least 500 by 300 pixels (or larger).
  • Include contact information in case CDC follow up is needed. Please let us know if we can share your contact information within your success story in case other organizations would like to partner with you for future events.

Partner Success Stories by Season

2016-17
Stanford Flu Crew Provides Free Vaccines to Community
Stanford Flu Crew

This past year, Stanford Flu Crew offered cost-free influenza vaccinations to over 3500 community members in the Bay Area. From on-campus events to local libraries, churches, shelters, and farms, Flu Crew managed to access communities in a 200 mile radius over the course of 3 months and 20 events.

Texas Department of State Health Services: Stopping The Flu Is Up To You! Twitter Chat and Campaign
Keep Germs to Yourself

The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) TexasFlu.org campaign and recent Twitter Chat informs the public about the flu and reminds every one of the importance of getting a flu shot and taking everyday actions to prevent illness.

Fight the Flu Foundation Creates Awareness Ribbons to Support their Cause
Fight Flu Foundation Ribbon

Fight the Flu Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to raising awareness about the seriousness of flu, especially for families and children, has started its own Flu Awareness Ribbon to support the foundation’s cause.

NIVW Flu Blog-a-thon
CDC Flu Blog-A-Thon

During National Influenza Vaccination Week (NIVW) 2016, CDC invited partners to write blog post on the importance of flu vaccination as part of a flu blog-a-thon.  Over 25 partners participated in the blog-a-thon, generating over 30 blog posts ranging in topics from the importance of flu vaccines for caregivers to tips on protecting your family from flu during the holidays. The collaborative effort of so many partners promoting flu vaccination to a variety of audiences helped increase awareness about flu and remind people that it is not too late to get a flu vaccine this season!

Vote %26 Vax
Vote %26 Vax

Walgreens Pharmacy collaborated with the Vote and Vax organization in Wildwood New Jersey on Election Day to offer influenza vaccinations to voters in the community of Cape May County. Vote and Vax is committed to protecting Americans from the flu and has helped provide thousands of flu vaccinations to at-risk Americans.  This collaboration helped deliver flu vaccines to a large patient base in the community, many of whom previously never received a flu vaccination. The flu shot is the best protection you can get against influenza. That’s why each year the CDC recommends a flu shot for everyone over the age of 6 months.

Families Fighting Flu Stay in the Game Season Flu Campaign
Stay in the Game

Families Fighting Flu (FFF), a national non-profit organization dedicated to raising awareness about the seriousness of flu, continued with its ongoing educational campaign called Stay in the Game™ that aims to keep everyone healthy through annual flu vaccinations so that no one misses out on important events like school, work, and fun activities with friends!

Seasonal Flu Digital Ambassador Kristina Duda of Verywell.com Cold and Flu
Screenshot: Seasonal Flu Digital Ambassador Kristina Duda of Verywell.com Cold and Flu

New to the Digital Ambassador program this season but a long-time supporter of CDC’s national flu vaccination campaign is Kristina Duda of Verywell.com Cold and Flu. Ms. Duda’s Cold and Flu posts on Verywell are part of the About.com family of sites. Verywell.com’s experts help millions of users answer questions, solve problems, learn something new, and find inspiration. Ms. Duda, a registered nurse, is an authority on the topic of influenza.

2015-16
Families Fighting Flu Joins the Keep Flu Out of School Partnership
Families Fighting Flu

Families Fighting Flu (FFF), a national non-profit organization dedicated to raising awareness about the flu, participated in Year 3 of the Keep Flu Out of School program with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID), and the National Association of School Nurses (NASN). This initiative is a school-based program that focuses on the prevention of influenza among elementary school students in kindergarten through fifth grade. Close to 5,000 students in Chicago, IL; Springfield, MO; and Santa Rosa County, FL participated in Year 3 of the program. The goals of the program are to raise influenza awareness amongst students, parents, teachers, and school nurses; to reduce childhood immunization barriers; and, ultimately to increase influenza vaccination coverage rates among children in elementary school.

The Kid’s Doctor and CDC Talk #FluFreeKids on Twitter
Join the #FluFreeKids Twitter Chat

On March 7, 2016, CDC teamed up with The Kid’s Doctor, one of CDC’s partners in flu prevention, to host a Twitter Chat about the importance of flu vaccination for children of all ages. The #FluFreeKids chat was moderated by CDC Flu Expert Becky Schicker and Dr. Sue Hubbard, pediatrician and spokesperson for The Kid’s Doctor. Leveraging the #FluFreeKids hashtag, the social conversation focused on several key topics, including flu vaccinations, children at high risk for flu complications, antivirals, preventive actions, and additional flu resources.

CDC and Healtheo360 Take on Facebook for #FightFluForum
Join our #FightFluForum to learn more

On February 23-25, 2016, CDC and Healtheo360 worked together to host a forum on Healtheo360’s Facebook page. The three-day #FightFluForum focused on providing people with chronic health conditions with information and steps for protecting themselves against the flu. A CDC subject matter expert supported Healtheo360 by providing answers to questions they received throughout the forum.

Flu Prevention Partners Focus Promote NIVW during 4-Day Family-Focused Blog Relay
#NIVW2015 blog relay's theme is Focus on The Family
Kicking off #NIVW2015 blog relay with a post on flu vax and the family

During National Influenza Vaccination Week (NIVW) 2015, CDC worked with five partners to host the 2015 NIVW Blog Relay, a multiday online event promoting the importance of flu vaccination among a variety of audiences. The blog relay used a “Focus on the Family” theme to encourage readers to focus on protecting their family during the holiday season and beyond. The participating partners helped CDC reach audiences across the lifespan, including general family, parents, people living with chronic diseases, and seniors.

2014-15
CDC Wins Hermes Gold Award for Mobile Game Targeting Health Disparate Populations
Screenshot of the first screen of a mobile game created to raise awareness of CDC's flu and vaccine related health information.

With over 6,000 entries from across the United States, Canada, and several other countries, CDC is proud to have been named as a recipient of the Hermes Gold for Mobile Information Experience Award. Hermes awards recognize outstanding work in the marketing, advertising, production, and communications industry. Other recipients in the mobile creative design categories include Dainik Bhaskar Group of Mumbai, India, Allstate Insurance, and AstraZeneca.

Flu Vaccination Digital Ambassador Initiative Flourishes in Second Year
Flu Vaccination Digital Ambassador 2014-2015

Now in its second year, the Flu Vaccination Digital Ambassador initiative has more than doubled in size, from six Ambassadors in 2013-2014 to 13 for the 2014-2015 season. This year, Digital Ambassadors generated more than 124 million earned digital media impressions through 755 blog, website, and social media posts—an increase of more than 120 million impressions and 670 posts since the initiative’s first year.

Flu Vaccination Digital Ambassadors Create Flu Prevention Dialogue through Multi-Day Facebook Forums
Photo of senior woman kissing a young child.

CDC co-hosted three multi-day Facebook Forums with three Flu Vaccination Digital Ambassadors during the 2014-2015 flu season, in an effort to address consumers’ flu questions directly. A Place for Mom, Vaccinate Your Baby (the Facebook page of Every Child By Two and Shot of Prevention), and LIVESTRONG were the digital ambassadors who co-hosted these events. Together, the Forums generated 270 questions and comments, 1,540 likes, and 528 shares via 17 posts on the partnering hosts’ Facebook page timelines.

CDC’s #VaxWithMe Selfie Social Media Campaign
Photo of woman at March of Dimes national office showing arm just vaccinated.

The #VaxWithMe campaign seeks to drive visibility of flu vaccination, spark engagement around the importance of vaccination, and ultimately, generate a movement that encourages more people to get their flu vaccination every year. Between September 2014 and April 2015, 552 participants used the #vaxwithme hashtag 827 times, generating 18.4 million impressions.

Vaccination Digital Ambassadors Set the Stage for NIVW with Week-Long Blog Relay
Screenshot: Senior living blog

In the week leading up to NIVW 2014, seven CDC partners committed to posting about flu vaccination one day of the week as part of a “Countdown to NIVW Blog Relay.” The relay generated seven individual blog posts, 124 social media posts from participating partners’ cross-promotion, and 21.6 million total impressions—all by the time NIVW had just kicked off. Partners treated the activity as a true relay with each being responsible for publishing one blog post on each day and providing a “relay hand-off” that directed readers to the following day’s post on the next partner’s blog.

Regional Medical Center of San Jose
As of 12/05/2014, 1500 employees participated in the 2014 Influenza Vaccination program.

The Employee Health Department is pleased to announce the success of the 2014–15 Seasonal Influenza Vaccination Campaign. The Regional Medical Center of San Jose is excited with this year’s result of 94.2% vaccination compliance which is a great accomplishment. By vaccinating the leadership team, this has created a great example among healthcare workers.

2013-14
Flu Vaccination Digital Ambassador
Flu Vaccination Digital Ambassador

In the 2013-2014 flu season, CDC launched a Flu Vaccination Digital Ambassador initiative to establish a group of online publishers dedicated to raising awareness about flu vaccination throughout the season. During the initiative’s inaugural year, CDC initiated six Digital Ambassadors, five targeting high priority audiences—pregnant women, healthcare providers, seniors over the age of 65, people with chronic conditions, and parents and caregivers of young children and a sixth addressing a larger, general audience.

Family Voices
Family Voices Campaign: Children with neurologic conditions are at increased risk of flu complications. Protect your child. Get the Flu Vaccine NOW!

Family Voices, a nonprofit dedicated to family centered care for children and youth with special healthcare needs (CYSHCN), has launched a collaborative campaign with CDC that aims to inform parents and caretakers about the importance of flu vaccination among people in this group. This collaboration helped reach a new audience with critical messaging about the importance of flu prevention – a major achievement for the campaign.

Text4baby Service
Free. Pregnant? New Mom? Help keep you and your baby healthy. Text4baby. Text RABABY to 511411.

In September 2013, Text4baby, a free service of the National Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition named Rite Aid as its first national retail partner. In celebration of the new partnership, Rite Aid provided 10,000 free flu shots to Text4baby mothers during the 2013 flu season. Pregnant women and new moms who were enrolled in the service received a free flu shot code redeemable at their local Rite Aid pharmacy.

Jewish Healthcare Center, Massachusetts
Vaccinating our staff at Jewish Healthcare Center, Massachusetts

With consistently high patient and resident flu vaccination rates, between 96% and 100%, the Jewish Healthcare Center, Worcester, Massachusetts focused on improving employee flu vaccination rates during the 2013-2014 season to comply with new patient safety standards as required by Joint Commission of Accreditation of Hospitals, Massachusetts Department of Public Health, and Accountable Care Organizations. Within just the first two months, from October to December, JHC more than doubled their prior season’s rates, with 82.5% of staff being vaccinated against the flu!

Lawton Indian Hospital, Oklahoma
Public health nurse, Kendall Washburn, vaccinating Kiowa Tribal Princess, Antonia Belindo

As of early November 2013, USPHS Lawton Service Unit had achieved a 96% employee flu vaccination rate. BEE WISE…Immunize! became Lawton Indian Hospital’s 2013 campaign slogan in our effort to break previous records for employee flu vaccinations: 90% in 2011 and 92% in 2012.

Fort Wayne-Allen County Department of Health
I Did It For You

With a goal of increasing seasonal flu vaccination rates by 5 percent, the Fort Wayne-Allen County Department of Health embarked on a wide-ranging flu vaccine campaign in 2013. The effort included provider training and education, special promotional materials and a radio PSA.

Thanks to a grant from the Indiana State Department of Health and the time and effort of our dedicated staff, so far more than 140 people representing 25 healthcare providers were trained on giving flu vaccine, nearly 3,500 doses of flu vaccine were administered to area school children, and 1,665 radio spots promoting flu vaccinations aired on local radio stations.

Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC)
Flu Fighters at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

In September 2013, responding to new regulations from New York State’s Department of Health requiring all health care personnel to be vaccinated against influenza (“flu”) or wear a mask in areas where patients may be present, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) kicked off a vigorous campaign to raise awareness of the new rules and vaccinate employees.

2012-13
Childhood Influenza Immunization Coalition (CIIC)
Improving Childhood Influenza Immunization Rates

The 2012-2013 influenza season marked five years since the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID) established the Childhood Influenza Immunization Coalition (CIIC) to encourage and support a universal pediatric influenza immunization recommendation and help improve influenza vaccination rates. CIIC membership comprises more than 30 of the nation’s leading public health, medical, patient, and parent groups, working together to protect children from influenza by communicating with “one strong voice” the need to make influenza vaccination a national health priority.

Families Fighting Flu
Illustration of mother with young children.

Families Fighting Flu (FFF) is a national, nonprofit organization comprised mainly of families who have either lost a child to the flu or whose child became seriously ill due to the disease. In response to feedback received from its membership, FFF held two free webinars during the fall of 2012 to educate about flu prevention for the entire family. Both webinars were well-attended with nearly 200 participants, including parents, local/state health agency workers, and FFF members, from across the country.

Fort Wayne-Allen County Department of Health, Indiana
Woman getting vaccination at Fort Wayne-Allen County, Indiana, Department of Health

During the 2012-2013 flu season, the Fort Wayne-Allen County Department of Health launched an ongoing vaccination awareness campaign. The Department of Health held or assisted with seasonal flu immunization clinics in which approximately 6,450 vaccinations have been given (as of Dec. 1, 2012).

Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies
Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Success Story icon

In support of National Influenza Vaccination Week (NIVW), the National Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition (HMHB) partnered with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Families Fighting Flu (FFF) to feature a two-part blog post on its updated website. The blog posts were promoted on the HMHB homepage as well as through various social media channels for HMHB, FFF and CDC.

National Association of School Nurses Blogger Briefing
NASN Blogger Briefing

In support of National Influenza Vaccination Week (NIVW), NASN became the new blogger on the block by hosting an hour-long blogger briefing on December 4, 2012, to raise awareness and increase seasonal influenza vaccine uptake. Four organizations participated in the briefing: Moms that Vax, Immunization Action Coalition (IAC), National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID), and Parents of Kids with Infectious Diseases (pKids). The blogger briefing focused on the important role school nurses play in getting school-age children and their families vaccinated each year.

National Association of School Nurses (NASN) Campaign Resources
Fighting the Flu Happens at School! is a resource for school nurses to promote seasonal influenza vaccination to members of their school community.

NASN advances the specialty practice of school nursing to improve the health and academic success of all students with national and international reach to approximately 16,000 school nurses who are in 75% of the nation’s schools serving 52 million students and their families.

Richmond City Health District
Deputy Director, Dr. Danny Avula of the Richmond City Health District

The Richmond City Health District is strong in partnership development and has made great strides in building public awareness, understanding, and support of the CDC flu vaccination campaign. Starting in December 2011 with a campaign kick-off during NIVW, where participants included city agencies, church ministries, and African American print and broadcast media, 2012 ushered in even greater partnership growth.