Stay Healthy, Get a Flu Shot Soon
ISABEL, S. D. - The height of the flu season will be upon us shortly, and the best way to avoid catching the virus is to get your flu shot. Registered Nurse Lisa Martin with Prairie Community Health says they're telling their patients that now is the time to roll up that sleeve for a vaccination.
"We have already had a case of positive influenza in South Dakota, so get them as soon as you can. Some of our schools offer flu shots, so we promote that parents have their kids get their shots at school if they don't want to come into the clinic and get them. We try and promote it as much as we can with anybody who comes in the door. It's usually one of the 'vital signs' this time of year – we do their vitals, and ask if they've had their flu shot yet."
Some people resist getting an influenza vaccination because they think it will make them sick. Martin says they hear that, too, and try to help patients understand that it isn't the case.
"We tell them that the flu vaccine we give is not a live virus; it should not ever make you sick. You may have received a cold, or some kind of virus or illness around the time you got the flu shot, but the flu shot itself should not make you sick."
She says only about one out of 20 patients hesitates about getting a shot. Her clinic has been giving shots since mid-September and should have a sufficient vaccine supply through the flu season.
