Last year roughly 30 per cent of Albertans turned out to clinics, doctors offices, and pharmacies to roll up their sleeves to receive their flu shots, one of the highest turnouts AHS has seen in the province. Vaccines became available once again yesterday and AHS is urging Albertans not to wait to get immunized. Medical Officer of Health Dr. Albert de Villiers says for those who tend to wait until December or January to get vaccinated, by then it’s usually too late.
“It’s like waiting until the war in on top of you before you go and get prepared for it. Let’s get our bodies ready by getting the influenza vaccine because it takes about two weeks to get working inside your body, until you’ve got good immunity.”
de Villiers says he hopes even those that don’t believe they need a flu shot go get vaccinated this year.
“Some people tell me that they don’t need the vaccine because they are 20 years old or 30 years old or they don’t have any chronic disease, but please go because you can still get influenza, you might even end up in hospital, or the worst is might make you’re own child sick if it can’t get the vaccine.”
This year AHS is hoping to see an even higher turnout, and has ordered enough vaccine for 40 per cent of the population.