Flu Clinics to be Held this Fall

The Community Nurses hold flu shot clinics each year at all Senior Centers in Elk, Cameron and McKean Counties to ensure that our senior population has convenient access to this important yearly immunization. In 2015, the Community Nurses will be using Quadrivalent flu vaccine for flu immunizations.

The Quadrivalent flu vaccine is designed to protect against four different flu viruses; two influenza A viruses and two influenza B viruses. For years, flu vaccines were designed to protect against three different flu viruses (trivalent flu vaccine). This included an influenza A H1N1 virus, an influenza A H3N2 virus and one B virus. Experts had to choose one B virus, even though there are two very different lineages of B viruses that both circulate during most seasons. This meant the vaccine did not protect against the group of B viruses not included in the vaccine. Adding another B virus to the vaccine aims to give broader protection against circulating flu viruses. As with the Trivalent vaccine, Quadrivalent vaccine cannot cause influenza illness, because the vaccine viruses used to make it are ‘inactivated’ (killed) or attenuated (weakened).

The flu is a contagious respiratory illness caused by influenza viruses that infect the nose, throat, and lungs. It can cause mild to sever illness, and at times can lead to death. The best way to prevent the flu is by getting a flu vaccine each year.

Flu clinics will begin on October 5. Click here for the complete schedule.