By Bibeka Shrestha
Last year, two confirmed cases of the flu struck Kendal at Lexington, a
retirement community and health center, even though those two people had
been given flu shots.
The elderly, one of the
categories of people for whom the flu can be
life-threatening, are less responsive to vaccines than others, said
Tracy Kennedy, a nurse practitioner at Kendal.
Kendal, like the rest of the area, has been queuing up early for flu
shots this season. About 98 percent of the residents and employees of
Kendall have already been vaccinated, according to Kennedy.
AP Photo
The Rockbridge County, Lexington and Buena Vista health departments are
currently offering flu shots to the entire community, but supplies are
diminishing fast.
“It’s going very, very quickly,” said Deborah Bundy-Carpenter, the nurse
specialist for the Central Shenandoah district. “We have less than 500
doses left.”
Flu season in the United States peaks in January or later, according to
national experts. Local health officials say the peak is February or
March, but many of those at risk in this area have already been
vaccinated.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lists those at high risk
for flu on their Web site:
· Persons 65 and older, with and
without chronic health conditions.
· Residents of long-term care facilities.
· Persons aged 2-64 years with chronic health conditions.
· Children aged 6-23 months.
· Pregnant women.
· Health-care personnel who provide direct patient care.
· Household contacts and out-of-home caregivers of children less than 6
months old.
Stonewall Jackson Hospital’s employees and volunteers have received
vaccinations against the flu. The rest of the vaccines at SJH are
reserved for in-patients. “We’ve gotten a majority of the shipments,”
said Kim Reese, an infection control employee nurse at SJH.
There had been a delay in shipment of vaccines to the hospital,
according to Reese, but no shortage of vaccines like last year.
Shortages and delays are common because so few companies manufacture
influenza vaccines for the United States. According to the CDC, four
manufacturers are responsible for providing vaccines for the entire
nation this year. Also, it takes time to manufacture efficient flu
vaccines since the makeup of the flu virus changes each year.
A major cause of delays in shipment this year was due to one of these
four companies’ underproduction of vaccines. Chiron Corporation produced
below its previously stated range of 18-26 million doses due to
production delays.
Washington and Lee University, which pre-ordered flu vaccines from
Chiron months in advance, still hasn't gotten its shipment. "There is no
word on when we will receive them," said Theresa Luder, a nurse at the
campus health center.
"Last year half of our shipments came on time, and the rest didn't get
here," said Dr. Jane Horton, who also works for W&L's health center.
Horton said the university would be notified through e-mail as soon as
they receive the shipments. Until then, Horton recommends that students
and faculty consult their private physicians or contact local health
departments.
Wal-Mart and Kroger have jumped on the bandwagon by also distributing
flu shots to the public. Horton said W&L was not able to order from its usual distributor because they sold out in a single day. "Big
retailers like Wal-Mart purchased all of it," Horton said. "It's very
frustrating."
When these vaccines do reach local health officials though, there is
rarely a shortage of people who want to receive them.
In Buena Vista this week, 60 flu shots were given in one day at a
doctor's office. “And there are still people in the waiting room,”
Cheryl Vassar, a nurse who works for Dr. Michael Cunningham.
"We get so bombarded with people who want flu shots that we don’t have
to advertise,” Bundy-Carpenter said.
“We’ve had a lot of calls,” said SJH's Reese. “But more people should be
getting flu shots.”
With or without a vaccination, everyone can take certain precautions
against the flu virus.
“Keep your germs away and wash your hands,” said Vassar, the Buena Vista
nurse.
Bundy-Carpenter advised that everyone cover their mouths when they cough
or sneeze, use hand sanitizers with at least 60 percent of alcohol and
dispose of tissues promptly.
Reese encouraged those who had not yet received vaccinations to keep
checking with their physicians and local health departments. “You can
still get [the vaccination] in November, December or even in January,”
Reese said.
SJH expects to receive another shipment of vaccinations by the end of
November or the beginning of December, Reese said. There will be
advertisements in local papers if SJH decides to offer the vaccinations
to the public.
However, there are some people who should not get vaccinated. The CDC
states that those who are allergic to chicken eggs, younger than six
months or those with a moderate or severe illness with a fever should
not get vaccinated.
Those who are worried that they might get the flu if they get the flu
shot have an “erroneous view,” Bundy-Carpenter said. She said the flu
shot is made with a synthetic, not a live, virus, so it can’t cause the
flu.
Still, it is possible to get sick after getting the shot since it takes
14 days for the vaccine to build up immunity.
Contact info/directions to local health departments
Produced by Washington and Lee journalism students.
Lead supervisor: Prof. Claudette Artwick
Reporting supervisor: Prof. Doug Cumming
Editing supervisor: Prof. Pamela Luecke
Technical supervisor: Michael Todd