CLEARFIELD – July is a month when most people are planning picnics and summer vacations. But at Clearfield Hospital, planning is under way for a not-so-pleasant reality of life – flu season.
“As always, our goal is to educate residents about how they can protect themselves from any type of communicable disease, including the flu. There are two important ways to do that: one is to have an annual flu shot, and the other is to practice healthy habits like hand washing, proper cough etiquette and good nutrition,” stated Sue Stiner, director of nursing.
Clearfield Hospital has created a task force whose goal is to build upon the hospital’s past success in providing flu shots to the community. Members include Stiner; Jen Sunseri, infection control/employee health nurse; Michelle Bennett, Pharm.D., director of pharmacy; Rose Lloyd, physician practice manager; Wanda Rougeux, wound clinic coordinator; Karen Warfield, home care director; Rosemary Shannon, home health nurse; and Amy Duke, marketing director.
In order to reach its goal, the team plans to expand upon the hospital’s current immunization program. Among the activities planned are:
- A public flu shot clinic for adults and children (3 years and older) slated for Sept. 12 from 3 p.m. – 6:30 p.m. at the hospital located on Turnpike Avenue, Clearfield. The event will take place in the cafeteria, which is located close to the main entrance. The cost of the shot is $20. Medicare Part B will be billed for those who have it; please bring your card. During the clinic, several of the hospital’s departments will have displays featuring health-related topics. Those receiving the flu shot will be entered into a drawing to win one of several gift cards from local merchants.
- Also during the Sept. 12 flu shot clinic at the hospital, the Pennsylvania Department of Health will provide shingles vaccine for uninsured people 50 and older at no charge. Please call 814-765-0542 to pre-register for the shingles vaccine.
- Another flu shot clinic for adults and children (3 years and older) will be held during the annual Hospice Chili Bowl scheduled for Sept. 19 from 5 p.m. – 9 p.m. at the Clearfield Driving Park. Again, the cost of the shot is $20; if you are covered by Medicare Part B, please bring your card.
- Home health nurses will provide flu shots at numerous locations throughout the county working in conjunction with community partners.
- Clearfield Hospital’s physician clinics will host flu shot clinics at their sites; dates and times will be announced soon.
- The hospital’s wound clinic, located on the first floor of the hospital, will provide flu shots at the clinic on Tuesdays from 1 p.m. – 3 p.m., and Thursdays from 10 a.m. until 12 p.m., in September and October. As with the other clinics, there is a $20 charge for the shot; bring your Medicare Part B card.
- The infection control/employee health department will partner with local businesses and school districts to provide on-site flu shot clinics.
- Clearfield Hospital will also partner with local school districts to provide information about disease prevention to elementary students, and educate students and their parents about the importance of having children immunized.
“In general, anyone who wants to reduce his or her chances of getting the flu should be vaccinated. However, it is recommended that certain people should get vaccinated each year. They are either people who are at high risk of having serious flu complications or people who live with or care for those at high risk for serious complications,” Sunseri said.
People who should get vaccinated are: children aged 6 months or older; pregnant women; people 50 years of age and older; people of any age with certain chronic medical conditions; people who live in nursing homes; household contacts of persons at high risk for complications from the flu; household contacts and out-of-home caregivers of children less than 6 months of age; and healthcare workers.
Sunseri said there are some people who forgo having a flu shot because they believe that by having the vaccination, they might contract the illness.
“This is not true. The viruses in the flu shot are killed or inactivated, so you cannot get the flu from a flu shot,” she said.
More details about immunization plans will be announced in the local media over the next several weeks. For more information in the meantime, or to learn more about an on-site flu shot clinic at a business, please contact Duke at 814-768-2827.