I have . . . the one and only time being when I was in college and it wiped me out for 2 weeks.
Since then, I've gotten a flu shot every year. I've also never paid for a flu shot because they were given for free from school, through my employer, or through my volunteer organizations.
I noticed a few signs around Regis advertising for free flu shots on one morning only, "Saturday September 29th from 9am - 2pm or until supplies run out". I was shocked.That is not nearly good enough to safeguard a large community of close quartered individuals.
According to a recent NPR article, the National Foundation of Infectious Disease found that between 8 and 39 percent of college students get the flu vaccine. Despite being a high risk group for getting and spreading the virus, why is this happening?
Last year's flu strain called H3N2 yielded the deadliest flu season in over 40 years. In 2017, there were a reported 80,000 flu related deaths in the US. A flu shot can save a life, yet why aren't college students, the supposedly most educated population cohort, protecting themselves?
What are some of the reasons that some of you have or haven't gotten your flu shot yet?
Here are some juicy FYIs I learned from the news article:
- Although the vaccines don't offer complete protection, the CDC estimates that the risk of illness is reduced by about 40 - 60%. IF you do catch the flu, your illness is likely to be milder with less major complications.
- You can't catch the flu from getting the vaccine. If you are among the tiny percent of people who have fever or get sick chronologically after your shot - it's a reaction to the shot or you've caught another unrelated strain. This seems to be a huge misconception that I hear all the time.
- Pregnant mothers can safely get the flu vaccine which transfers across the placenta and protects the baby for around 6 months post-partum.
- TL;DR: GET YOUR FLU SHOT. Or petition Regis to make a more significant effort in providing free vaccines to all Regis members.
Reference:
Aubrey, A. (2018, October 1) Think You Don't Need A Flu Shot? Here Are 5 Reasons to Change Your Mind. NPR (https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2018/10/01/652140517/think-you-dont-need-a-flu-shot-here-are-5-reasons-to-change-your-mind)
I remember when Regis offered the free flu shots. In fact, I work in Residence Life and Housing, and I was there working to help keep the administering of vaccinations flowing smoothly (I also received my free flu shot). I agree that this event was not nearly good enough to safeguard our Regis community, but what also shocked me was that only a handful of students showed up to get a flu shot. I worked for two of the five hours offered, and I counted less than twenty students. And this just reminds me that there are so many people who do not get vaccinated at all. I am fairly proactive when it comes to my own health, and I understand that vaccinations play a huge role in preventative health, so when other people try to explain to me why they refuse to get themselves or their children vaccinated, I never fail to get a little irritated, despite my belief in autonomy in healthcare.
ReplyDeleteI think that one way to increase the number of people who get vaccinated each year is through education. If more people understand herd immunity and population healthcare in general, I think that more people would be proactive in vaccinating themselves and their families. I also found this article that talked about preschool vaccination programs and finding incentives for parents to get their children vaccinated. One proposed incentive in this study was a financial incentive. Not surprisingly, some parents in the study were against this incentive since it sounded like bribery and violation of autonomy to them, and some were all for it. What was interesting is that when the study was performed in London, parents were not generally supportive of this incentive because they were concerned about parental choice. In the same study in the US, parents were generally supportive of it because it seemed fair and motivating (I am not sure what this says about the cultures of these two places). And when parents were asked about other incentives for preschool vaccinations, many proposed more flexible appointment times and more accessible information about vaccinations. These suggestions are aspects of healthcare that can only be changed by the healthcare field. What parents are proposing cannot be changed by themselves. I think that this study sheds light on the responsibilities of the field of medicine to the populations they serve. Healthcare providers have the responsibility to educate and inform their patients, but also to provide reasonable opportunities for patients to receive healthcare. If these things are all it takes for more people to get vaccinated, imagine what else we could do for preventative health in the future if we simply took an extra step or two to serve patients a little better.
**Here is the citation to the article I found**
Flynn, D., Ternent, L., Becker, F., Oluboyede, Y., & Adams, J. (2017). Parental Preferences for the Organization of Preschool Vaccination Programs Including Financial Incentives: A Discrete Choice Experiment. MDM Policy & Practice, 2(1), 238146831770831. doi:10.1177/2381468317708319
Last season was such a terrible flu season, but I didn't realize the death count hit 80,000! The vaccine for last season was unfortunately a very poor match with something between a 10-20% efficacy rate at preventing the flu. However, that's still better than not getting vaccinated at all and as you pointed out, the reports of "getting the flu" from the flu vaccine itself are just patently false. The vaccine contains what are called the spike proteins of the flu virus, hemagglutinin and neuraminidase (this is where the H and the N come from when naming the strain of the flu.) There is no actual genetic material in the vaccine and it does not contain live virus, it just contains these spike proteins which the flu virus requires to attach to its potential host. These proteins are enough to generate a primary response from your immune system and ultimately protect you (hopefully) from getting sick, although last year clearly showed that this does not always work.
ReplyDeleteAs a former medical assistant that worked at a pediatric clinic and administered hundreds of shots to many kids, I was always shocked by how many parents there were that decided not to vaccinate their children for the flu or for other vaccines. Despite being covered by insurance and advised for by each child's provider, parents would still refused to get vaccines. I also just read in a recent article that was published last week from the CDC that the number of unvaccinated children is on the rise https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/67/wr/mm6740a4.htm?s_cid=mm6740a4_w. I think these statistics call for increased attention and education on the matter as the the herd immunity conferred from higher rates of vaccinated children is crucial for others who are immunosuppressed and who may not be able to get vaccines to protect themselves. Also interesting to consider is whether schools should mandate flu shots to students as ethically this may be justice in protection for all students from herd immunity, yet violates autonomy. Considering flu related deaths which is more important in this situation?
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