It's Better to Get Vaccinated Even If You Miss the Timing... Daedong Hospital Offers Free Flu Vaccinations for Seniors

From the 19th to the end of the year, flu vaccination is essential due to COVID-19

Daedong Hospital will begin the national vaccination program for the elderly starting from the 19th. [Image source=Clipart Korea]

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] Busan Daedong Hospital (Director Park Kyung-hwan) has been selected as a designated medical institution for the 2020-2021 seasonal influenza national vaccination support project and will begin providing free national flu vaccinations to the elderly starting from the 19th.

The free national flu vaccination for the elderly will be conducted until December 31.

▲ Elderly aged 70 and above (starting from October 19, 2020) ▲ Elderly aged 62 to 69 (starting from October 26, 2020) ? to ensure smooth vaccination, the start dates are separated by age group.

Especially this year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there is concern that the free flu vaccination program may end early, so it is important to check the vaccination age precisely and not miss the vaccination period.

For elderly persons aged 65 and above, since they are exposed not only to the risk of influenza but also pneumonia, it is advisable to consider receiving both the flu vaccine and the pneumonia prevention vaccine together.

Influenza is an acute respiratory disease caused by infection with the Influenza virus (A, B, C). It is a contagious disease transmitted to others through droplets from the respiratory tract of infected patients.

After an average incubation period of 1 to 4 days, symptoms such as high fever above 38°C, sore throat, dry cough, and respiratory symptoms appear, along with systemic symptoms including headache, fatigue, weakness, muscle pain, and loss of appetite. Nasal congestion, runny nose, abdominal pain, vomiting, and eye pain may also accompany.

Common complications of influenza include upper respiratory infections such as otitis media and sinusitis, as well as lower respiratory infections like pneumonia, bronchitis, bronchiolitis, and neurological complications such as myelitis and encephalitis, and myocarditis may also occur.

Healthy individuals typically recover after a few days of symptoms, but infants, the elderly, chronic disease patients, heart disease patients, and immunocompromised individuals may develop complications.

Influenza is often mistaken for a “severe cold” and confused with the common cold, but these two diseases have different causes.

In particular, influenza causes severe systemic symptoms such as high fever, muscle pain, and lethargy in addition to common cold symptoms. Since the causes of flu and cold differ, receiving a flu vaccination does not prevent the common cold.

Dr. Shim Eun-hee, head of the Respiratory Medicine Department at Daedong Hospital, said, “Since the symptoms of COVID-19 currently circulating are similar to those of influenza and difficult to distinguish, it is necessary for all age groups, not just high-risk groups for influenza, to get vaccinated against the flu.”

She also stated, “Because it takes about two weeks after vaccination for immunity to develop, vaccinations should be administered by early November at the latest.”

Dr. Shim emphasized, “For recommended vaccination groups such as infants, the elderly, chronic disease patients, and pregnant women with weakened immunity, it is better to get vaccinated even if the vaccination period has passed rather than giving up.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.