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Drive-Thru Shots Ahead of Flu Season

Marianna Bacallao, WVIK News
A nurse from the Rock Island Health Department administers Flu shots.

 Today, the Rock Island County Health Department hosted a drive-thru Flu clinic. 
As nurses chased bandaids blown around by 30-mile-an-hour winds, hundreds of drivers coasted through the Greater Quad City Auto Auction to get vaccinated ahead of Flu season. By noon, the clinic had run out of children's Flu vaccine. 

Janet Hill of the health department says the vaccine is crucial this year, since it's possible to have both the Flu and COVID-19.  

"Flu and COVID-19 use the same healthcare resources. They use ventilators, they use ICU beds, they use specialized staff. So, it's vitally important that people get their Flu shot because that is the only protection we have this season. There is no vaccine for COVID yet."

But there is a bright side; since the two viruses are so similar, safety measures against COVID-19 work against the Flu as well. Social distancing, wearing masks, and frequent handwashing have become a part of life, and Hill says that gives us an advantage we've never had before.   

The Rock Island County Health Department will also host a Flu shot clinic Tuesdays starting Oct. 13, and Genesis kicks off its Flu-Free Quad Cities program on Oct. 7 at Modern Woodman Park. Target pharmacies are offering a $5 coupon, and Hy-Vee is offering discounted gas with a Flu vaccine. 

Marianna Bacallao is WVIK Quad Cities NPR's 2020-2021 Fellowship Host/Reporter. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from Mercer University's Center for Collaborative Journalism and served as Editor-in-Chief for the student newspaper, The Cluster.
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