Health district, community set plans for flu shots

The Spokane Regional Health District plans to schedule drive-thru flu vaccine clinics soon after receiving its childhood flu doses from the state Department of Health, said SRHD spokeswoman Kelli Hawkins.

The DOH also is supplying the agency with adult flu doses, so SRHD will be able to provide the flu vaccine to adults who are uninsured or under-insured.

Scheduling of the drive-thru clinics will depend on weather and air quality.

“We do know of some pediatric offices doing childhood immunizations in a drive-up fashion,” Hawkins said. Someone calls upon arrival at the site, and medical staff comes to the car to vaccinate the child.

“We are unsure how many community partners will be providing drive-thru flu vaccination services at this time.”

The agency plans to share messages in the community about this year’s importance of flu shots during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We are definitely going to be pushing strong messaging to encourage people to get their flu vaccine,” Hawkins said. “This has already started with vaccine messaging on social media within our featured blog on immunizations, and we highlighted its importance during the COVID-19 pandemic on our regular Facebook Live.”

She said people can come into the agency’s office for flu shots, but those without a scheduled appointment will be taken care of in a limited capacity.

The DOH says getting a flu vaccine this year is more important than ever during the pandemic to keep people from getting sick or hospitalized because of influenza. The state department recommends an annual flu shot for everyone ages 6 months and older.

It’s also running a statewide flu vaccine information campaign in five languages that began Monday. More information is at DOH’s flu overview.