With all the hysteria over swine flu, now  a good time to test your flu prevention program’s chances for success.

Few employers benchmark their flu programs, a study from the Disability Management Employer Coalition finds. But those that do often discover room for improvement.

Nearly 80% of employers provide workers access to flu shots, either onsite or at a local clinic. And 72% cover some or all of the cost (typically paying between $10 to $20). But:

• at 89% of firms, fewer than half of employees actually get a flu shot
• at 38% of organizations, fewer than 25% of employees participate
• only 6% of firms are able to get at least 75% participation
• 87% of survey respondents said  they never measure absenteeism during flu season, and
• 75% never tracked whether employees who get flu shots are actually absent less often.

The firms that get best results are those that actively educate workers, track flu-related absenteeism and send sick workers home.