Flu Vaccine Analysis
Binnay Pirot and Sabrina Do
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Summary
The aim of this descriptive cross-sectional study was to see whether the COVID-19 pandemic influenced the decision by healthcare workers and non-healthcare workers to get a flu vaccine. From November 9th through the 21st of 2020, participants were invited to complete an online survey on how likely they were to get the flu vaccine in the year 2020, the start of the pandemic, versus pre-COVID 19, year of 2019. A total of 305 participants 18 years and older in Washington State participated in this study. Healthcare professionals were found to be more likely to get a flu vaccine compared to non-healthcare workers in 2020. Among participants 55 and older, flu vaccination did not vary from 2019 to 2020. Little mention of the COVID-19 pandemic was brought up in the completed questionnaires where participants were asked to state their reason for getting or not getting the flu vaccine. Out of the 305 participants, only 3 mentioned COVID-19 (less than 1% of all responses) as one of their reasons. It is recommended to get a flu vaccine during the COVID-19 pandemic as these two viruses share similar symptoms. In times of uncertainty, any prevention method can help decrease the risk of flu and COVID-19 infections. Through public health surveillance, results of this study can be updated as the pandemic continues. With the rise of COVID-19 vaccinations and flu season set to come around yet another year, administered flu vaccines may very well rise from the initial study.
