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MYTH #1
It is not important for health care workers to be vaccinated against the flu if they are healthy.
FACT
Even if you are healthy, as a health care worker, it is important to get the flu vaccine every year. You could be at risk of getting the flu and passing it to others because of your close contact with patients.
MYTH #2
I work in a large health care organization where many staff members get the flu vaccine. One less person who gets vaccinated won’t make a difference.
FACT
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommends that all health care workers get a flu vaccine every year. In past years, flu infections in hospitals and long-term care facilities have been attributed to low vaccination rates among health care workers. According to the CDC, getting vaccinated against the flu every year is the most effective method for preventing the flu and its complications.
MYTH #3
To protect myself against the 2009 H1N1 flu strain and seasonal flu, I need to get two vaccines.
FACT
You only need to get one vaccine to help protect against seasonal flu and the 2009 H1N1 flu strain. This flu season, the flu vaccine offers protection against both strains.
MYTH #4
I don’t have any flu symptoms so I cannot pass the flu to my patients.
FACT
The flu is contagious and can be deadly. Even if you don’t show symptoms of having the flu, you can still pass the virus to patients.
MYTH #5
The flu vaccine is not safe.
FACT
You cannot get the flu from a flu vaccine. According to the CDC, almost all people who receive the flu vaccine have no serious problems from it. However, on rare ocassions, flu vaccination can cause serious problems, such as severe allergic reactions.
MYTH #6
The flu vaccine does not work.
FACT
The ability of a flu vaccine to protect a person depends on the age and health of the person receiving the vaccine. In addition, the similarity or "match" between the viruses in the vaccine and those in circulation can affect the vaccine’s ability to protect a person against the flu.
MYTH #7
Antibiotics can work just as well as the flu vaccine.
FACT
Antibiotics do not fight infections caused by viruses, such as the flu. Antibiotics cannot be used to treat the flu and will not prevent the spread of flu. Antibiotics are not a substitute for the flu vaccine, which helps prevent flu infection.
MYTH #8
By January, it’s too late to get the flu vaccine.
FACT
It's not too late to be vaccinated in January. Yearly flu vaccination should begin in September, or as soon as the vaccine is available, and continue throughout the flu season, which can last as late as May.
For the latest information about the 2011-2012 flu season and seasonal flu, please visit the CDC's website at www.cdc.gov/flu.
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