Flu fairs

Wednesday through Friday
10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Outside the Memorial Union, Tempe campus

Friday
1–5 p.m.
Nursing and Healthcare Innovation Building, Downtown Phoenix campus

Monday and Tuesday
10 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Union Ballroom, Polytechnic campus

Nov. 12
10 a.m. – 2 p.m. and 4–6 p.m.
Nursing and Healthcare Innovation Building, Downtown Phoenix campus

It’s flu season again, and one ASU health professional said getting vaccinated has broader benefits than simply avoiding a week sick in bed.

Denise Link, associate dean for clinical practice and community partnerships in the College of Nursing and Healthcare Innovation, is organizing flu fairs to be held at the Downtown Phoenix campus on Friday and Nov. 12, where ASU students, ASU employees and members of the general public can get flu vaccinations quickly and easily.

The vaccines are free to students who use the ASU health plan, and most insurance providers will be accepted, Link said.

For people without health insurance, or whose health insurance plans won’t cover the vaccine, there is a $21 fee to be vaccinated.

Link said that the official flu season starts in mid-October, and lasts until the end of February. People should get vaccinations, which typically last four months, now to protect themselves and others from the potentially fatal illness, Link said.

Link said the vaccine not only could prevent the flu in young adults but also prevent them from acting as carriers for the disease that could be spread to the elderly and infants, who suffer from a much higher mortality rate than healthy adults.

“If you’re healthy and young, the flu might keep you bedridden for about five days, and you’ll miss a lot of school,” Link said. “If you’re elderly, or an infant, it can kill you.”

Link wants students to understand that while their health is important, there is a higher level of responsibility that they are a part of and need to be aware of.

“The elderly are more susceptible to serious complications from the flu,” Link said. “Regardless of how the flu may effect a young person, that young person is still carrying the germs that can cause death in an infant.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the flu is responsible for close to 36,000 deaths every year. The CDC said seniors over the age of 65 and children under the age of 5 made up nearly 70 percent of the fatal cases.

Link said that in the past, vaccines have been in short supply, but this year there is enough to vaccinate anyone who wants it.

She went on to say that there are simple things people can do to prevent outbreaks of the disease.

“Washing your hands is the best way to prevent spreading the germs,” she said. “And don’t cough or sneeze into your hands. When you do that, you’re putting those germs on every doorknob and keyboard you touch.”

Vaccines are available by appointment anytime through all campus health services, and the Downtown flu fair welcomes walk-ins.

Reach the reporter at jaking5@asu.edu.