This is a joke ….
Are they going to check every person who says they have had the flu shot to make sure that they have?
I doubt it….
they might be able to check out the staff
BUT
all the visitors?

Yes I have had my flu shot, but it is by choice not because some power hungry bureaucrat has dictated I must.

No flu shot here, that was my choice. I won’t be wearing a mask either. Northern Health can kiss my …

Posted on Friday, November 28, 2014 @ 5:59 AM by strictlyspeaking

No flu shot here, that was my choice. I won’t be wearing a mask either. Northern Health can kiss my

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Then please stay home so that you don’t kill somebody with a compromised immune system.

Or are people really that selfish nowadays? I hope not.

What a freaking joke thinking you are safe if you have had a flu shot! What if they guess wrong again? Just because you get the flu shot doesn’t mean you won’t get the flu. This so called vaccine does not have a 100% efficacy rate. So everyone that goes to the hospital or works there should wear a mast whether they have had a flu shot or not!

Oh by the way. Recent study shows that giving the flu shot to someone that has a healthy immune system has little or no effect.

You might want to ask the shot giver if they are HIV positive just in case you flinch when they inject you and someway stab themselves too.

Mask! But mast would be cool too.

NoWay,
I am not touting if the vaccine is good or not,

I am questioning how northern health plans to ENSURE everyone has the flu shot…sounds like a pretty time consuming, daunting if not impossible task.

One that anyone can bypass just by saying they have had it…..
so their little power shot sounds like a 35 year old dog, lots of bark but it has no teeth.

We really need more weekend clinics! I know you can pay at your convenience, but more people might get their shot if they didn’t have to choose between skipping out on work or paying at the pharmacy. It’s also a little odd that there are so few days to take school aged kids. Parents who want their kids vaccinated – take advantage of today’s non-instructional day!

In case anyone was wondering about the effectiveness of this year’s vaccine: (From CTVnews / CBC Almanac also covered this)

“Flu expert Dr. Danuta Skowronski. of the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control:

One of the problems she foresees is that the H3N2 component of the vaccine being offered in the Northern Hemisphere is not optimal. It’s a mismatch, in the language of flu vaccine.

Vaccine strains for our winter flu shots were chosen last February, before last winter’s flu season was over. It’s always done that way — it takes months to make, bottle and ship the vaccine we use every winter.

Last February, the viruses circulating seemed to be quite similar to those that were in the 2013-14 flu shot. So manufacturers were told to make this year’s flu vaccine using the same strains.

But when the experts who select the vaccine strains met at the World Health Organization in September to pick those that should go into the Southern Hemisphere winter 2015 vaccine, they saw that a new version of H3N2 had emerged.

The viruses had “drifted” — changing their outer appearance in a bid to evade immune systems that had seen H3N2 before. That means the H3N2 component of the vaccine generates antibodies that may not recognize the new viruses as well.

The mismatch is not reason to forgo a flu shot this year, she suggests. It is known the vaccine offers some cross protection against viruses that aren’t identical to the ones in the shot. And the three strain vaccine also protects against H1N1 viruses and influenza B as well — though the B strain is probably also a mismatch.

But people who do get vaccinated should understand they may still be vulnerable, and take precautions, Skowronski says. That means things like washing your hands frequently and staying home when you are sick.”

Refreshing that she’s admitting to a mismatch, helps to make an informed decision

It was only about 100 years ago that the Spanish flu killed millions.

The flu shot isn’t perfect nor is it a guarantee. Nothing is. But if I can get a shot and potentially not kill a senior or a child by unknowingly passing the flu to them, I’ll take those odds any day.

From the quote above: “The mismatch is not reason to forgo a flu shot this year, she suggests. It is known the vaccine offers some cross protection against viruses that aren’t identical to the ones in the shot.”

Thanks, Filtered.

Of the 3500 Canadians that die from the flue or its complications every year in Canada, I wonder how many had the flu shot??? They never seem to publish these stats.

We know that having a shot does not necessarily stop you from getting the flu.

“…though the B strain is probably also a mismatch.”

You forgot the rest of the quote JB

No I didn’t. I got the important part.

I agree with ‘strictlyspeaking’ and I’m not staying home. I’ve never had the flu shot and I’ve never had the flu. My mother gets the shot every year & she gets the flu every year. Go figure???

I had the flu shot once in my lifetime, and that was 13 years ago. The following year I had the flu 4 times in one year. Following that I had the flu twice until 3 yrs ago. Have had no flu since. No flu shot for me.

Since some of you are piling on with your non-scientific anecdotal evidence, here’s mine.

When I was younger, I used to get the flu almost every year. Then I was diagnosed with diabetes which can weaken the immune system. I was told to get a flu shot. I’ve done so every year since diagnosis. That was 9 years ago and I haven’t had the flu once since then.

Anecdotes aside, the flu shot doesn’t cause the flu. That’s a myth that’s been long debunked.

It is great to cause others illness or death due to your negligence or reluctance in following authority. Seems a lot of people in PG and other burgs have this attitude that prevails on blog sites. Let’s not do what they ask so we can kill a small child or maybe a senior or two as long as we are not inconvenienced into putting on a silly mask.

Haven’t had the flu since getting the shots. Hey even my libido increased, wink wink.

last year I had to take my mum to the hospital during flu season, I do not get flu shots so I wore a mask. We sat in that hospital for over 5 hours I did not see one other person with a mask on. the only thing wearing the mask did was scare people from sitting near us because they thought I was ill. Anyway I have not got sick since I started taking oregano oil during sick season or when I see sick people. Stay healthy

“The flu shot isn’t perfect nor is it a guarantee. Nothing is. But if I can get a shot and potentially not kill a senior or a child by unknowingly passing the flu to them, I’ll take those odds any day.”

My point JB is even if you do get the flu shot you could still potentially kill a senior because NH says you are safe when you aren’t so wear a mask too!

CDC says when the flu shot works it only has an efficacy of 61%. So bravo for getting the flu shot but you can still potentially pass the flu on to someone else.

Please be aware, the policy on either having a flu shot or wearing a mask is not about keeping YOU healthy, it is about keeping the other patients at the hospital healthy.

For most of us the average flu strain is a bit of an inconvenience, maybe it’s a day or two off work feeling like garbage. But for the immune-compromised and already sick patients in the hospital, it can be dangerous and cause major side effects or death.

The surgical masks provided offer little protection to the person wearing them. They are for reverse isolation, they prevent the virus from spreading by keeping YOUR respiratory secretions confined. Again, this is about protecting vulnerable patients, not about protecting you.

So if you choose not to get a flu shot, that’s fine for YOU. But please take a moment to think about the patients that can’t protect themselves before you start being selfish and saying you refuse to wear a mask. Give a little consideration to those whose lives could be impacted by that decision.

Posted on Friday, November 28, 2014 @ 8:10 AM by lhl

We really need more weekend clinics! I know you can pay at your convenience, but more people might get their shot if they didn’t have to choose between skipping out on work or paying at the pharmacy.

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If you qualify for a free shot you do not have to pay at the pharmacy. They’ll bill the government for your shot. Had mine for free last Friday night at the Shopper’s in the Hart.

I guess the pecking order at Northern Health is: Healthcare workers can be infectious and expose their deadly diseases to the public, whom they are caring for, but the public must be vigilante to not infect the healthcare workers, when they are visiting the hospital.

NoWay: “CDC says when the flu shot works it only has an efficacy of 61%. So bravo for getting the flu shot but you can still potentially pass the flu on to someone else.”

And there’s a 61% chance that I don’t. Are you being obtuse on purpose?

JohnnyBelt unfortunately you are conversing with someone who does not care. There will always be a round about reason they don’t feel obligated to follow the rules.

This is about public safety, reducing the risk – no matter if it is only 1% – is still reducing the risk to someone who may be at high risk to get an infection. Someday this may be you NoWay, JimmyHughes, Filtered, bcracer, strictlyspeaking, (and others) in a hospital bed hoping other idiots don’t ignore the simplest of rules and add to your recovery risk

Especially quite appalling strictlyspeaking’s attitude but not surprising I might add

@slinky: So what has been wrong with the protocol that has been in place previously? Did you and the other hand wringers just have an epiphany, and now you are wiser than all the rest of the great unwashed?
I understood the problem with infections within hospitals had more to do with lax standards and enforcement of hygiene rules amongst those who so clearly know better.

Pharmacists who give flu shots should be wearing disposable gloves. A new syringe and a new pair of gloves. After seeing one who did not on local TV I am somewhat appalled. I sincerely hope that NH enforces rules about proper hand washing and wearing of gloves as rigorously as the mask or else effort. I will wear a mask if I have to. No problem. But I had only two voluntary flu shots in my life and each time I immediately got the flu a couple of days later! No use trying to argue with me about that, I know what I went through.

The most easily identifiable transmitters of germs and viruses are business door knobs and shopping carts.

Bring on the masks!

No JB I’m telling you that you aren’t safe from spreading the flu because you have had the flu shot. So you get your flu shot and you don’t have to wear a mask, that for some reason is logical.

Slinky so you get your flu shot and go to the hospital and not wear a mask and you are okay with that? If someone is in the hospital and their immune system is weak you could still spread the flu them. How will you know that the flu vaccine worked on you? You won’t so wear a mask anyway.

@JimmyHughes a question for Northern Health and not me

@NoWay it is about mitigating and managing risk. Like the nurse in the states that sued to get out of quarantine, her 18 days were more important than the risk she created. Same as the nurse who gave the immunization, I am sure there were heated discussions on people’s rights. Those in charge have to balance rights of those visiting with the rights of those who are there due to illness. Imagine the outcry if everyone had to wear masks, especially on this site. Similar to the nurses who refused a flu shot had to wear masks in past years to mitigate them passing an annual controllable illness to their patients

Kind of ironic to visit the hospital one has to wear a mask or have the shot, but it’s okay for someone with hiv to give a shot or potentially pass the disease some other way.Wonder how that kid up in Ft. st James is doing after being at risk from getting HIV from a health care worker.

The media sure seems quiet about the HIV. I’d like to know the outcome. That nurse should be charged for putting someone’s life at risk.

If they had unprotected sex with someone they’d be charged. Why not in this case?

Exactly slinky, from NoWay’s point of view, if there isn’t an iron clad guarantee there’s no point in doing it at all.

You have the right to not get a flu shot, but you don’t have a right to put those who might have compromised immune systems at additiional risk.

As the fluoride pumps will soon be gathering dust and cobwebs maybe Northern Health can use them to inject the flu vaccine into the water supply every year. People will get it whether they want it or not. Problem solved. You’re welcome!

So it’s okay then for those people that get the flu shot to spread the flu then? Seriously you can’t see the flaw in this? The flu shot isn’t 100% effective if it was I could see their logic. So out of 100 hospital workers that got their flu shot 39% could be spreading it! Brilliant!

The flu shot is not a guarantee that you won’t get the flu period.

Go ahead and roll up your sleeve for your shot of goo but you should wear a mask too!

(-facepalm-)

Right back at you JB if you seriously think it’s okay not to wear a mask because you have had your flu shot. That you know for sure that you are one of the folks that it actually worked on.

Not to long ago, the end of Oct, I ended up in the hospital by ambulance. I thought because I was not feeling well for a couple of days that I would get over what ever it was I had. Anyway to make a long story short….I was very ill by the 3rd day and was brought to the hospital by ambulance where the attendants put a mask over my mouth and nose just in case. Now I for 1 appreciate this, because you never know who has got a flu but maybe some other air/fluid born disease that you sure the hell don’t want. I have not had a flu shot because I have an allergy to the base that it is made. So, I would rather take the precaution of a mask because I sure wouldn’t want to spread what I had. Still not sure what it was. We are not immuned.

Good thing there coming up with a vaccine for Ebola.

The number of flu deaths in Canada for the 2012/2013 season was approx. 400. So in a population of 35 Million, you can do the math., However one mathematical fact is that 99.8% of Canadians will not die from the flu.

So, how many people in BC have actually died from the flu, and even more interesting how many in Prince George. There are many complications associated with the flu deaths such as pneumonia, heart failure, etc; Seems some of these deaths are not actually caused by the flu, but are counted as flu deaths.

The whole question of flu related deaths is a mess, and the official numbers they use ie; 2000 to 8000 per year are based on computer models, and are subject to countless errors.

The count of 400 comes from an actual count of the flu as the cause of death on death certificates, how ever even this number is suspect.

It seems that 90% of those who died from flu related deaths did not have a vaccination, however the number is so insignificant I wonder if it really makes any difference, when you consider that 60% of Canadians do not get a flu shot.