Flu shots still restricted as season's peak looms
By Robbie Dingeman
Advertiser Health Writer
Most of the chronically ill people who asked to be vaccinated in Hawai'i have received flu shots this year, state officials said yesterday.
The national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says those who are at high risk for serious complications from the flue and should be vaccinated include: • People aged 65 years or older; • Children younger than 2 years; • Pregnant women; • People of any age who have certain underlying health conditions such as heart or lung disease, are transplant recipients or have AIDS. Fending off the flu • Practice good party etiquette: Don't go to the holiday gathering if you're sick. Sharing a cold or flu isn't a good present. • Stay home from work if you're sick; you'll protect others and feel better faster. • Cover your mouth and nose when you cough or sneeze. • Wash your hands frequently with soap and water. • Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. • Boost your immune system by getting lots of rest, eating healthy and limiting alcohol intake. • For more information about the flu, call the Department of Health at 586-8300 on O'ahu or (800) 933-4832 from a Neighbor Island or visit www.hawaii.gov/health. Source: State Health Department
Nearly 15,000 people received the vaccine from the free state supply and demand is waning, but officials are still restricting shots to those most at risk.
Who is at risk?
But with Hawai'i entering the traditional peak of its flu season, officials urge anyone at high risk of complications from the flu who has not gotten an immunization to ask their doctors for one.
Flu is on the rise in Hawai'i but there's been no outbreak or out-of-the-ordinary pattern of the illness, according to Dr. Sarah Park, of the state Health Department's disease outbreak and control division.
"So far, so good," she said.
Hawai'i's peak flu season usually runs from around now through January.
Demand for shots soared when news of the national flu vaccine shortage hit in October, but that urgency has faded.
"We were getting flooded with calls," Park said. "It was crazy. We were getting calls from people desperate to get flu vaccine."
She said the state has felt in pretty good shape overall after more than 240,000 doses came into the state this year, which covered many of the high-risk patients.
Officials worry that people who could benefit from the protection were intimidated by word of the shortage and didn't even try to get a shot, said Park.
"Some people just don't realize how serious flu can be for them," she said.
The national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has classified the high-risk groups for serious complications from influenza include persons aged 65 years or older, children under the age of two, pregnant women, and people of any age who have certain underlying health conditions such as heart or lung disease, transplant recipients, or people with AIDS.
Beginning Jan. 3, in areas where local health authorities judge vaccine supply to be adequate to meet demand, the CDC priority groups will include adults age 50-64 and out-of-home caregivers and household contacts of people in high-risk groups.
Some states had enough vaccine left to offer shots to anyone who wanted them.
In Hawai'i, officials aren't ready to give shots to anyone who asks.
Some people who are still calling to receive the shots fall outside the chronically ill group targeted as the state's highest priority, said Park. For example, someone who is 65 years old but not suffering from a chronic illness falls under the federal guidelines to receive the shot but wouldn't have qualified for the free state vaccine offered in recent weeks.
With the state's clinics over, health director Dr. Chiyome Fukino urges anyone in the CDC high-risk groups who believe they still need a shot to ask their doctors and, if necessary, to ask their doctors to refer them to other physicians who may have access to vaccine.
"Check with all your doctors, specialists and even doctors of other family members. Be persistent," she said.
Last month, more than 19,000 additional doses of flu vaccine was made available to private physicians to buy for their patients.
More vaccine may be available for doctors to purchase in January, said Park.
Reach Robbie Dingeman at rdingeman@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2429.
