Small Town News

Will Offer Flu Shots Later in September

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I know it is hard to believe with all the nice, warm weather we are having that the flu season will be here before we know it. We hope you will get your flu shot this year to reduce your chances of getting sick and to help mange the spread of this illness.

Influenza (the flu) is a contagious respiratory illness caused by a virus. Symptoms are chills, fever, and fatigue, headache, dry cough, sore throat and muscle aches. In short, you feel awful! It spreads person-to-person by coughing and sneezing, or by touching a contaminated surface and then touching your nose or mouth. You can pick it up at school, work, shopping, church or a sporting event - actually any where.

On the average, 226,000 people are hospitalized every year from the seasonal flu and 36,000 die from complications. Most of the ones that die are 65 or older, but many of those hospitalized are children younger than four years.

The single best way to prevent the flu is a flu vaccine. It is recommended that the following get vaccinated:

All children 6 months through 18 years

Pregnant women

People age 50 and older

People with chronic medical conditions

Residents of nursing homes or long-term care facilities

Household contacts of people at high-risk of contacting the flu

Household contacts of children under age six months

Health care workers

It is important to know:

The type of flu the vaccine protects you from is not the "stomach flu" (nausea and vomiting).

Despite what some people say, the flu vaccine cannot give you the flu. It contains no "live" viruses. It is inactivated. That is why protection does not develop for two weeks after getting the shot.

Some people coincidentally catch a cold a week or two following immunization. This is not a result of their flu shot. The flu is not a cold.

To be protected, you must be immunized every year. Influenza viruses change often, therefore the vaccine is updated every year.

Some people are not candidates for immunization and should seek medical advice before getting a flu shot. Talk to your doctor before getting if you ever had serious reaction to eggs or to a previous dose of influenza or have a history of Guillian-Barre Syndrome.

Your flu shot protects not only you, but the ones you love.

Flu vaccine may be given at the same time as other vaccines, including pneumococcal vaccine.

Although being vaccinated is important, it is also very important to wash your hands regularly -- especially before eating and after using the restroom. Be sure and cover your coughs and sneezes and remind your children to do this. If you or your child is sick, please stay home from work, school, etc. This will go a long way towards preventing transmission of the illness.

This year the CDC (Center for Disease Control) has recommended that we begin giving the influenza vaccines in September. They have reassured us that folks will have protection throughout the flu season even though this is earlier than what we've done in previous years.

Sept. 22-23 you may come to the Comanche County Health Department anytime from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. without an appointment and receive flu and/or pneumonia shots. These vaccines will be made available at the Protection Community Building from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Sept. 24.

After these dates, you can call the office at (620) 582-2431 to schedule an appointment. We are here for you.

I want to stress, this vaccine does not provide protection against the H1N1 virus. That vaccine is being tested now and will be made available later in the fall.



Copyright 2009 The Western Star, Coldwater, Kansas. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from SmallTownPapers, Inc.

© 2009 The Western Star Coldwater, Kansas. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.

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