Programs that encourage Arkansans to get annual flu shots are paying off.
The state ranked 15th in the nation in the percentage of residents who got flu vaccinations by the end of May this year. Of residents older than 6 months, 49.7 percent were vaccinated, according to data released by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Flu shots are not recommended for children younger than 6 months.
South Dakota had the highest flu vaccination coverage at 57.4 percent and Nevada the lowest at 36.4 percent.
Gary Wheeler, Arkansas Health Department branch chief of infectious disease, said there has been a statewide effort in recent years to vaccinate the public for the flu.
He said private physicians, pharmacists, hospitals and local health units, along with schools and businesses, have been working together.
"There has been a lot of emphasis on influenza vaccination and making sure it is available," Wheeler said.
Flu vaccinations in the state have climbed from May 2010, when about 44 percent of the state's population received them, according to CDC data.
Dr. Brenda Rude, a Bentonville physician for Mercy Northwest Arkansas, said she asks every patient whether he wants a flu shot.
"From Labor Day to close to Christmas, one of the first things out of my mouth is 'Do you want a flu shot?'" Rude said. "I ask them every time I see them, that way I don't miss anyone."
Mercy clinics are already administering flu shots this year, Rude said.
The CDC recommends that people get their flu shots as soon as the vaccine becomes available, preferably by October.
"I don't think there is a too soon," Rude said. "We do see flu cases earlier in the year than we used to."
Flu season typically starts in the fall and runs through early spring. Wheeler said flu season could begin earlier this year because cases have already been confirmed in the state.
"If indeed this is the beginning and we see more and more cases, then we are in for a much earlier season than last year," Wheeler said.
It is possible the recent cases were brought in from another region and won't spread to start the season early, Wheeler said.
He said it could take a couple of weeks to know for sure.
The 2013-14 flu season in Arkansas was the deadliest in more than 30 years, said Kerry Krell, a spokesman for the Arkansas Department of Health. Flu deaths in the state totaled 76 last year, she said.
Health officials said the circulation of the 2009 H1N1 strain of flu last year was at least partly to blame for the high number of deaths.
Wheeler said it is uncertain what flu strains will circulate this year.
The state Department of Health recently received its shipment of flu vaccine, Wheeler said. He said some local health units will receive the vaccine this week. Public and school vaccination clinics will begin about mid-October.
The Department of Health administered 252,571 flu vaccinations through schools and vaccination clinics last year.
Arkansas led the nation in flu vaccinations among youths ages 13-17, according to the CDC data.
More than 63 percent of teens in that age range were vaccinated during the 2013-14 flu season.
Wheeler attributes that number partially to school clinics, which make it convenient for children to receive their shots.
"The schools have been very cooperative," Wheeler said. "Tons of credit to our folks on the ground in the local health units who really work overtime to make sure kids get vaccinated."
Wheeler said the school and immunization clinics are only part of the state's vaccination efforts. Most vaccinations are received either from private physicians, hospitals or pharmacists.
The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences offers flu vaccinations to every patient admitted to the hospital, said Charles Smith, UAMS executive associate dean for clinical affairs.
"They are administered to patients during hospital admission or discharge," Smith said. "This is something that is established as a protocol. We make sure that we don't forget to give it to the patients."
The vaccination also is offered to patients visiting physicians' offices, Smith said. A policy requires all UAMS staff members to be vaccinated, Smith said.
"We believe that since we are a health care organization that we are most likely to put our fellow employees or patients at risk," Smith said. "I think it keeps our workforce at work and more productive, and it keeps our patients healthier. We think that is indication enough to require it."
The state also ranked high in the percentage of health care workers who receive flu shots, according to another report released by the CDC last week.
Eighty-eight percent of hospital employees in Arkansas were vaccinated during the 2013-14 flu season, the CDC data show. The national average for health care workers was 86.1 percent.
Wheeler commended hospitals in the state for requiring employee vaccinations.
"The people who are the most vulnerable are the people who have to go to the hospital," Wheeler said. "The last thing they need to do is go in with a problem with their lungs or heart and die from influenza."
NW News on 09/29/2014