Will You Get the H1N1 Vaccine?
The H1N1 virus spreads quickly and could seriously tax our healthcare system this year. Healthcare workers are among the high-priority populations for the vaccine. MSNBC published an article today titled "C'mon, health workers, get your swine flu shots." The article, which reports that only half of U.S. healthcare workers get a flu vaccine, says that nurses and other healthcare providers refuse the flu vaccine for a wide array of reasons:
A study published this week at bmj.com, the
online version of the British Medical Journal, reported that nearly
half of health care workers surveyed in Hong Kong earlier this year
said they would refuse the swine flu vaccine because of fears of side
effects and doubts about efficacy.
That
study came on the heels of a United Kingdom poll that showed 30 percent
of nurses would turn down the H1N1 shots, and researchers believe it's
a good indicator of health worker reluctance worldwide.
The
reasons health staffers in the U.S. and elsewhere give for not getting
flu shots range widely, said Robert M. Pestronk, executive director of
the National Association of County and City Health Officials. Some say
they never get sick, so they don't get it. Others believe that the
vaccine won't work. Others say they'll stay home if they get sick.
"And some say they don't like needles," Pestronk said.
Just a couple of days ago, the World Health Organization reported that the H1N1 virus has spread quickly: in 6 weeks it's spread as much as the seasonal flu spreads in 6 months.
What will you do? Click HERE to take our two-question survey about flu vaccines.