County Health Departments Plan Free Mass Flu Vaccination Clinics

Flu season is around the corner and local health departments are trying to beat it to the punch by offering free vaccinations.

The Washington County Health Department is holding a mass flu vaccination clinic from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday at The Jones Center for Families in Springdale.

Benton County's health department is holding a pair of clinics: from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Dec. 4 at the Rogers Activity Center and from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Dec. 5 at Community Christian Fellowship Church in Siloam Springs.

Vaccinations are free, but anyone with insurance should bring documentation to the clinic so the Health Department can be reimbursed, said Kerry Krell, public information officer for the Arkansas Department of Health.

Both shots and nasal mist will be available.

The clinics were originally scheduled for October, but a shipment delay pushed back the dates.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports seasonal flu activity peaks between December and February. It takes about two weeks after vaccination for antibodies to develop in the body and provide protection against the flu.

There is no way to know what strain of influenza is going to hit each year, but Krell said early indications show a prevalence of H3N2 that tends to mostly affect children younger than age 7 and seniors older than age 65.

The CDC reports the state's influenza activity as sporadic. The Arkansas Department of Health reports 280 positive influenza tests statewide since Sept. 28.

Last year's outbreak of the H1N1 strain, also known as swine flu, hits young and middle-age adults hardest, according to the CDC.

Krell said everyone 6 months of age and older should be vaccinated. Pregnant women should be vaccinated no matter how far along they are, she said, pointing to the death of an expectant mother in the River Valley last year. The 29-year-old woman planned to wait until later in her pregnancy to get the shot.

"Over the years the medical community has changed its vaccination recommendations for pregnant women," Krell said. "It used to be after the first trimester, but now it can be at any point."

The vaccination also helps the unborn baby because children can't be vaccinated until they reach 6 months of age, she said.

The delayed vaccination delivery to area health departments did not detour the agency's school vaccinations. Krell said 191,800 of the Health Department's 480,130 vaccinations went to the state's schools.

Loy Bailey, administrator of the Benton County Health Unit, said the county's schools received 8,500 vaccinations.

"Having so many children already vaccinated is very beneficial to the mass clinics," he said.

Approximately 1,000 people have attended each of Benton County's mass clinics over the past two years, Bailey said.

"The figure can be a moving target," he said. "People have had a little more time this year to get vaccinations other places."

Robin Thomas, administrator of the Washington County Health Unit, said they typically administer about 2,500 vaccinations each year.

The annual flu vaccination clinics are an important yearly process for the health units because it allows them to practice their mass immunization plans, she said.

Thomas plans on implementing a drive-through flu vaccination clinic next year. It's been several years since they held a drive-through clinic.

"We need to practice it," she said.