Getting a flu shot is typically a smart and highly recommended decision. This year, it has a great urgency that we cannot afford to ignore. The 2020 flu season—which starts right around October—offers a crucial motivator to makes the flu shot decision a no-brainer.
Health experts have for a long time expressed their concerns over the idea of having two deadly and similar viruses circulating the country. Our hospitals are already overwhelmed by the pandemic as is—and we don’t need another preventable respiratory disease adding onto the already overburdened load.
A Flu Season Like No Other – The Overlapping Symptoms of Flu and COVID-19
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the flu claimed over 34,000 lives in 2018/2019 season—and 61,000 (810,000 hospitalizations) the year before that. This alone burdens the health care system.
And since we don’t have a COVID-19 vaccine yet, the best weapon we have to prevent the collision of the two illness is taking a flu shot. The keywords, “Flu shots near me” should be among your search terms as part of your noble role to mitigate the potentially devastating impact.
One of the main concerns surrounding a flu season amid a global COVID-19 pandemic is the confusion that it brings. The CDCnotes that both respiratory illnesses share several symptoms including--fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath, fatigue (tiredness), sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, muscle pain or body aches, and headache.
With such an overlap of shared symptoms, it will be difficult to distinguish between the two. Anyone who shows these common symptoms may have to find COVID-19 testing available in their area—in addition to flu shot available now.
To quote Dr Cantrell, director of the Cumberland Plateau and LENOWISCO Health Districts, “Preventing and reducing levels of influenza in our community will reduce symptoms that might be confused with those of COVID-19…Flu vaccination reduces outpatient illnesses, hospitalizations and intensive care unit admissions, and helps protect our local and regional healthcare systems.”
Flu Shot Available Now at Cerritos Urgent Care
Getting a flu shot is not just about you. It also helps protect more vulnerable people such as those with weakened immune systems, chronic medical conditions, pregnant women, young children, and older adults.
For this reason, it’s in everyone’s best interest that you find ‘flu shots near me’ services. But ensure you get a flu vaccine from a health center such as Cerritos Urgent Care—which is keen on observing hygiene and other pandemic regulations recommended by the CDC.
And remember to frequently wash your hands thoroughly, wear a face mask, and stay 5 ft apart from others. Flu testing and COVID-testing is available at our Cerritos Urgent Care facility.