Students still advised to get H1N1 vaccine
Last Friday, Franklin College offered the H1N1 vaccine to its students and staff as well as others in the community. Out of the 800-dose total the county health department administered 314 doses of vaccine total were distributed, which isn’t a bad number, said Terri Nigh, the coordinator of student health services. Students receiving the vaccine were given a questionnaire which determined if they were to take the shot or the nasal spray. Unless they had a health condition they were encouraged to take the spray. "We are really pushing the nasal spray because college students are actually in the best population to receive the nasal spray," Environmental Health Specialist Betsey Swearinger said. "You’re healthy, you’re athletic, you take good care of yourselves and you’re not sick, so you fit into that category that is perfect for the flu mist." Swearinger is employed through the Johnson County Health Department. H1N1 is extremely contagious, and students living in residence halls are at a higher risk of contracting it. Swearinger said that it spreads faster through residence halls because the students touch a lot of common things: the stair rails, door handles and elevator buttons. If everyone isn’t washing their hands, then students are at a higher risk for contracting the flu. Nigh said it’s hard to gauge the number of cases potentially on campus because students may think they have something else. Swearinger says students should consider getting a vaccination because it’s the only way to guarantee not getting sick. Freshman Kinzie Caudill did not receive the vaccine. "I have never had the regular flu shot to begin with and have never had the flu either, so I don’t know why I would start getting this now," Caudill said. "I don’t want to get the flu from the shot. If I haven’t had it by now I don’t think I’m going to get it." Some students expressed concern about how fast the vaccine was developed. "I was concerned that they came out with so many doses so fast. I also heard there were bad side effects," freshmen Rachel Hancock said. Still, Nigh said she encourages students to get the vaccine. She says the peak of cases is over, but health officials are worried about another peak in February and March during the regular flu season. Although Franklin College won’t be offering another vaccine clinic, Nigh encourages students to attend a local one.
