Start thinking about flu shots

BY ELYSE AMEND

elyse.amend@transcontinental.ca

Headaches, fevers, chills and coughs, runny noses, watery eyes, aches and pains – not anyone’s idea of a good time. While official campaigns will only get underway next month, October is a good time to start thinking about flu shots.

According to HSSC West Island program coordinator Carolle Allard, the Lac St. Louis and Pierrefonds CLSCs started taking flu shot appointments last week. The provincial immunization campaign will begin on Nov. 6, and usually lasts until the end of December.

CLSC’s will provide those part of the “target population” – those who are more vulnerable to influenza – with free immunizations. This group includes babies between six and 23 months old, people over 60 years old, and those with chronic illness like cancer, heart disease, and pulmonary diseases, for example. Those who do not fall into the target population, but are in contact with people who are, should also think about getting the vaccine.

“Somebody who lives with their 65-year-old mother, or a mother with a three-month-old baby that is too young to get the shot, should get it. The entire house should get it,” Allard said.

Another major group this year’s campaign will focus on is people in the health sector. The HSSC’s goal is to reach 80 per cent of the province’s healthcare workers. Last year, only 45 per cent rolled up their sleeves to get a flu shot.

“It’s a major target this year that we’re going to be focusing on,” Allard said. “We’re going to make arrangements to make it easy for healthcare workers, so that they get it.”

Those not in the target population wanting to be immunized this year can contact their family doctor or private clinics that offer the shot for a fee, Allard said.

The influenza virus is spread through droplets coughed or sneezed into the air by someone who is infected, and can also be found on the hands of people who have touched surfaces where the virus is. People can become infected by shaking hands or touching surfaces, and then transferring it through touching their eyes, nose, or mouth. This is also why hand washing is heavily promoted during the flu season, which usually runs from November to April. According to Health Canada, every year, between 10 and 25 per cent of Canadians get the flu. While most recover within 10 days, between 4,000 and 8,000 Canadians die from serious flu-related complications annually.

“It’s important to sensitize the population,” Allard said. “I was amazed to find out that last year, 48 per cent of hospitalizations for children under 10 years old were related to influenza.”

As the influenza virus is constantly changing, the World Health Organization (WHO) updates it for every season. Manufacturers of the shot replicate vaccine strains, usually in chicken eggs. Getting a flu vaccine cannot cause influenza, because it does not contain any live viruses. Common side effects from the vaccine include soreness at the site of the injection, and sometimes fever, fatigue, and muscle aches. These side effects usually last only a few days.

According to Allard, 19,000 West Islanders took advantage of the HSSC’s free flu shot campaign last year.

“That was good, but we always want to reach more,” she said, adding that deaths related to the flu are still high: in Quebec alone, the mortality rate was between 1,300 and 1,800. “The numbers always amaze me.”

To make a flu shot appointment, call your local CLSC. The CLSC Lac St. Louis can be reached at 514-697-4110, and the CLSC Pierrefonds can be reached at 514-626-2572.