COLLIERVILLE, Tenn. — Baptist Memorial Hospital Collierville and Baptist DeSoto hosted free flu-shot clinics Tuesday, but last year’s vaccine was not very effective for some people.
Many folks are not fans of needles, but most said a moment of pain beats a week of the flu any day.
“It’s just a brief little prick, and you’re in and out,” Jamae Zarshenas said.
October marked the beginning of flu season for our area.
Dr. Owita Mays with Baptist Collierville said each year the CDC does diagnostic tests to determine which strains will be running most rampant.
“They can develop vaccines for those new strands. So this year the vaccine is supposed to be more effective,” she said.
Last year even if you got the shot, you still may have gotten sick.
“The influenza virus can mutate from year to year, and last year the vaccine was not as effective as we expected it to be. It was about 23 percent effective,” Mays explained.
This year, Mays said medical professionals are feeling better prepared: “It’s at least 70 percent effective against influenza A and B.”