Last Thursday, nearly 1,000 people were vaccinated against the flu in just
four hours at the Winnemucca Convention Center.
The free flu clinic took place by order of Dr. Tracey D. Green, the State
of Nevada's chief health officer, who called for the emergency distribution
of flu vaccine the day after Christmas.
In all, 945 people received a free flu shot from a small army of nurses
and EMS crew members from Humboldt General Hospital; other volunteers
from the state and the community helped crowds move through the convention
center distribution.
The state sent 1,700 vaccinations for the clinic, including 300 for pediatric
patients ages 6 to 36 months.
Remaining vaccines were taken to the office of the Community Health Nurse,
located at the corner of Haskell and Mizpah streets, where they will are
available for $20 each.
Children age 8 and under who received a flu shot for the first time need
to have a follow-up shot in 30 days.
According to the Nevada Division of Public and Behavioral Health, H1N1
is the predominant flu strain this season and the flu shot covers that
along with three other flu strains.
The Nevada Division of Public and Behavioral Health also confirms there
have been recent deaths in Nevada and nationwide associated with severe
complications of the virus.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said this flu season
is typical in that flu activity is currently low in the United States.
However, the incidence of cases in Nevada and in the United States is likely
to peak in February, so anyone who has not yet received a flu vaccine
should do so now.
Flu is a serious illness that causes approximately 200,000 people to be
hospitalized each year.
"The best precautions you can take are getting a flu shot, being conscientious
about hand washing, and if you are ill, limiting your contact with others
as much as possible," said Tracey D. Green, MD, Chief Medical Officer.
The following measures will help prevent local residents from contracting
or spreading the disease.
Additionally, the CDC recommends that people not travel while they are
ill. People with flu-like symptoms should wait to travel until at least
24 hours after their fever has subsided without the use of fever-lowering
medications.
Those who become ill while traveling should postpone traveling home until
they are well.
To contact the office of the Humboldt County Community Health Nurse, please
call (775) 623-6575.
For more information about seasonal flu, visit www.cdc.gov/flu/index.htm.
For more information about the Division of Public and Behavioral Health,
please visit: http://health.nv.gov.