COVID convinced me to get first-ever flu shot

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 25/08/2020 (1486 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

I have a confession: I’ve never had a flu shot. My excuses have always been that I don’t think I need one, I rarely get a bad case of the flu, and I prefer to build up my immunity the natural way. Mostly, I couldn’t be bothered.

What I never considered is that getting a flu shot is not about me. As public service messaging has bombarded us with, it’s about protecting others, especially seniors and those with weakened immune systems. I’ve finally come around to understanding that. So I’m getting the shot this year.

It’s a good time to jump on that bandwagon, too, considering COVID-19. A flu shot won’t protect you from the novel coronavirus. But it will likely reduce the spread of influenza, which will help protect others, but could also prevent hospitals from being overwhelmed this flu season with patients suffering from respiratory illnesses. That’s always been an important consideration. However, it’s even more crucial now that we’re in a pandemic, which could see hospitals flooded with COVID-19 and influenza patients at the same time.

The problem in Manitoba is there are too many people like me; folks who have never bothered to get a flu shot. Only about 23 per cent to 26 per cent of Manitobans have been getting immunized against influenza in recent years (it was 26.3 per cent in 2019-20), well below the national average of 42 per cent in 2018-19. When it comes to getting the flu shot, Manitobans have been a bit squeamish.

So far, the province has done extremely well in avoiding hospital overcrowding due to COVID-19. There was concern at the beginning of the pandemic that hospitals could be overwhelmed, which is one of the reasons for the widespread shutdown of the economy. But because of measures taken to contain the disease (and a lot of luck), Manitoba hospitals have rarely admitted more than 10 people at a time with the disease, and even fewer into intensive care units. Even now, with an uptick in cases, public health officials reported only eight people in hospital Wednesday, with one in ICU.

But that could change if there’s a second wave of COVID-19, combined with a bad flu season.

There is a glimmer of hope that could negate that. Countries in the southern hemisphere, which are just ending what is normally their flu season, have seen influenza cases virtually disappear this year. Countries such as South Africa, Australia and New Zealand have noticed steps taken to reduce transmission of the novel coronavirus have had the happy unintended effect of reducing the spread of the flu. Experts there say measures such as social distancing, more handwashing, mask wearing and staying home when sick help prevent the spread of any respiratory virus. So it makes sense it would help prevent the flu. Those measures appeared to reduce the transmission of the flu more than COVID-19, largely because the latter is more contagious, according to experts in those countries.

The World Health Organization also reported last month that the number of influenza cases worldwide has dropped somewhat this year.

There’s no guarantee what happened in the southern hemisphere will happen here, though, especially with schools opening in September (kids tend to be big flu spreaders). Which is why health organizations like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States is recommending a massive flu shot campaign this year to get as many Americans immunized as possible.

Manitoba has already increased its vaccine order by 20 per cent compared to last year, according to a spokesperson for Manitoba Health.

“Manitoba Health, Seniors and Active Living has ordered enough vaccine to immunize 40 per cent of the population,” the spokesperson said in an email. “Additional vaccine may be available to purchase if required.”

They may have to, if more people like me finally get off our duffs and get down to the local clinic or pharmacy for a shot in the next few weeks. There are a lot of things we can do to help reduce the spread of the coronavirus (and influenza, which killed 29 people last year) and help avoid hospital overcrowding in the coming months. Getting a flu shot is one of them.

 

tom.brodbeck@freepress.mb.ca