Southern Boone school nurse Robin Bullard said last week that 51% of SoBoCo students had received an influenza vaccination when the county held their flu clinic earlier this fall.
However, Bullard hopes that the half who did receive the vaccine is enough to ward off the flu bug this winter.
Fifty-one percent is pretty good,” Bullard said. “We also had about 100 members of the community come in and get the shot.
As flu season approaches, a University of Missouri Health Care infectious disease expert says that getting vaccinated is the best way to prevent influenza and limit the spread of the disease.
“We are approaching the time of year when we recommend getting vaccinated against influenza,” said Christelle Ilboudo, MD, an infectious diseases physician at MU Health Care. “Influenza viruses can start circulating as early as September and can last as late as May. The injectable vaccine takes up to two weeks to provide full protection after receiving it, so it’s advisable to get vaccinated sometime between September and the end of October. However, vaccination against the flu should be offered as long as the virus is circulating.”
~ Find out more in today’s Journal ~
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