We are coming into flu season, and last one was a doozy!! We have just received our flu shots as well!
This year we will be booking flu shot appointments on line. They will be short, and meant only for flu shots. Unfortunately due to our high patient load, we will only be able to immunize Grow Health patients. And only those that qualify for a flu shot. Please see below. There will be an occasional time when your doctor may be able to give you your flu shot when you are in for another reason, but this will be an exception...not the rule, so please DO NOT count on it.
So read below...make sure you qualify....then go to www.growhealth.ca to book your appointment. Up to four Grow Health patients can be booked into one appointment, so if you and your kiddos need immunizations they can all be done at the same time! Make sure to read the appointment info carefully to do this properly.
Thanks and Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!! Gobble Gobble Gobble!
http://www.bccdc.ca/health-info/immunization-vaccines/vaccines-in-bc/influenza-flu-vaccine
Recommended and provided free to the following groups:
1. People at high risk:
• People aged 65 years and older
• People of any age who are residents of long-term care facilities
• Adults (including pregnant women) and children with the following chronic health conditions:
o Cardiac or pulmonary disorders (e.g., bronchopulmonary dysplasia, cystic fibrosis, asthma)o Diabetes and other metabolic diseases
o Cancer; immunodeficiency (including human immunodeficiency virus [HIV] infection);immunosuppression due to underlying disease or therapy (e.g., severe rheumatoid arthritisrequiring immunosuppressive therapies)
o Chronic kidney disease
o Chronic liver disease, including hepatitis C
o Anemia and hemoglobinopathy
o Conditions that compromise the management of respiratory secretions and are associated with an increased risk of aspiration (e.g., cognitive dysfunction, spinal cord injury, seizure disorder, and neuromuscular disorders)
• Children and adolescents (6 months to 18 years of age) with conditions treated for long periods with acetylsalicylic acid
• Children and adults who are morbidly obese (adult BMI ≥ 40; child BMI assessed as ≥ 95 percentile adjusted for age and sex)
• Aboriginal peoples (on and off reserve)
• Healthy children 6 to 59 months of age
• Pregnant women at any stage of pregnancy during the influenza season (typically spanning November to April)
• Inmates of provincial correctional institutions
• People working with live poultry (Immunization may reduce the potential for human-avian re-assortment of genes should such workers become co-infected with human and avian influenza.)
2. People capable of transmitting influenza to those at high risk:
All health care workers (including all health authority staff, accredited physicians and residents, volunteers, students, contractors, and vendors) who come into contact with patients at health care facilities including long-term care facilities. This includes independent health care practitioners and their staff in community settings.
Visitors to health care facilities and other patient care locations
Household contacts (including children) of people at high risk whether or not those high risk people
have been immunized
Those who provide care and/or service in potential outbreak settings housing high risk persons (e.g.,
crew on ships)
Household contacts of healthy children 0 to 59 months of age
Those providing regular child care to children 0 to 59 months of age, whether in or out of the home
3. People who provide essential community services:
• First responders: police, fire fighters, ambulance
• Corrections workers