Duane Hicks
With the Northwestern Health Unit’s public influenza immunization clinics having wrapped up this month, the number of residents in the catchment area getting shots is on par with last year.
“It’s around the same. We’re sitting right around 10,000 for the region, which is within reach of where we were last year for the whole season,” Donna Stanley, manager of infectious disease control for the Northwestern Health Unit, noted Friday afternoon.
“We always get people continuing to come into the health unit right through winter, but the bulk of our shots get done in November,” she added. “We’re probably around the same as last year.”
Stanley said given the estimated population of the Kenora-Rainy River catchment area is 85,000, 10,000 might seem to represent a small portion. But the immunization program also is about what segment of the population is getting ’flu shots.
“The most vulnerable people when getting the ’flu, and the secondary effects of the ’flu, are the elderly and infants, and so, while we want to get as many people immunized as possible, the focus is often on the higher risk,” she remarked.
“But the other side of it is if we were able to get the numbers quite a bit higher, you can effectively prevent the virus from even coming into the community at all,” Stanley stressed. “Because if you have a large number of people in your community immunized, the virus has nowhere to go.
“It would be great if we could increase those numbers, but we’re trying to hit those most vulnerable, as well.”
Those who still haven’t got their ’flu shot are encouraged to do so, said Stanley, adding they can contact their local health unit office to make an appointment. Here in Fort Frances, the health unit can be reached at 274-9827.
Stanley pointed out there hasn’t been any major influenza outbreaks reported in Canada yet this season, so now is the time to get your shot.
“Two weeks after your shot is when you’re best covered, so ideally you get it before there’s ’flu in your community,” she explained. “If you wait until people start coming down with it, you’re kind of too late because it’s still going to take two weeks until your immune system kicks in with the vaccine.
“So, if people have the opportunity to make it in during the Christmas break or right in early January, that would be great.”
There’s a new ’flu vaccine every year because the strains change. The three viral strains the vaccine contains this year are A/Brisbane H1N1, A/Brisbane H3N2, and B/Florida.
For more information, contact the Northwestern Health Unit at 274-9827 or visit www.nwhu.on.ca
