BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — With the fall and winter months approaching, so is flu season, coupled with the lingering covid-19 pandemic. Many people are wondering when the best time to get vaccinated is and whether it’s safe to get a flu shot and a covid vaccine on the same day.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, covid and influenza are contagious respiratory illnesses caused by different viruses, but some of the symptoms of both diseases can be similar. That’s why Kern County doctors are encouraging the community to get their flu vaccines by the end of October and their covid-19 vaccines or boosters as soon as possible.
“It is recommended the earlier the better. The peak of the flu varies, but usually it is in the fall and winder, and we continue to see cases throughout the year,” said Dr. Ghassan Jamaleddine, Medical Officer for Adventist Healthcare.
Dr. Jamaleddine also says that those who are comfortable with getting a flu shot and a covid vaccine on the same day are safe to do so. The common side effects, like fatigue and muscle pain, are not any worse and getting both vaccines at once helps the body gain time in generating immunity.
“The initial data doesn’t seem to support this idea [that it is unsafe to get both vaccines at once]. It is recommended, to gain time and build immunity, to take both at the same time if you are planning to take them,” said Jamaleddine.
Jamaleddine adds that the last two flu seasons haven’t been as severe due to public health pandemic protocols like social distancing, wearing masks, and washing hands.
“We are very concerned right now that we might have a heavy season of flu because we don’t have the social isolation except in health care facilities and other facilities,” said Jamaleddine.
Chief Nursing Officer for Kaiser Permanente Dina Madden says we are entering the end stages of the covid pandemic, and many people are no longer required to wear masks in public. Madden believes that means a more severe flu season may be underway this year.
“People have not gotten the flu shot because they’ve been wearing masks, and what we know is that now, people are getting back to their normal lives,” said Madden. “It’s very likely that this will be a significant flu season.”
Madden also offers a reminder that the current flu vaccine is approved for everyone, including babies that are 6 months or older.
Dr. Jamaleddine is also concerned about the relaxing of social distancing and masking protocols because, just as with asymptomatic covid, someone can have a pre-symptomatic case of flu and spread the virus unknowingly.
“That’s why we have to continue to take them seriously,” said Jamaleddine. “So before having symptoms, you can spread the flu. We are now recommending really to continue with the masking in the health care facilities and facilities where there is an older population until we get more clarity of how this season is going to evolve.”
People who are interested in getting the flu shot can find information and resources about flu and flu vaccines at the California Department of Public Health’s flu information website, and find places in Kern County to get low-cost and free flu vaccinations at the Kern County Public Health Services Department’s flu page.
