Springfield school nurses giving free flu shots to students in October
In an effort to keep students healthy and in class, the Springfield school district is offering free flu shots starting Sept. 27.
The district is in the process of notifying parents of the option and getting students signed up.
Last year, with fewer students learning in person during the fall, the district gave nearly 2,800 flu shots to students.
“Normally, we give around 5,000 but we didn’t have as many students on site as we did in the past,” said Jean Grabeel, director of health services for the district. “So, we are hoping those numbers will go back up this year.”
How much does the flu shot cost?
The state’s largest district is able to offer the seasonal flu vaccine to any student, free of charge, with support from CoxHealth, Mercy Springfield and the Springfield-Greene County Health Department.
“It’s always important to get an annual flu vaccine but now we have COVID and now we have a pandemic,” Grabeel said. “The complications of having both of them together (flu and COVID) could be potentially very serious.”
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If you’ve gotten a COVID-19 vaccine, should you wait?
Asked if a student who recently received the COVID-19 vaccine needs to wait before the flu shot, Grabeel said no.
“The CDC has said it is fine to get them on the same day,” she said. “It’s important for parents to be talking to their (health) provider about their preference so they can make a decision about that.”
How to find out the schedule and how to sign up for flu clinics
Nurses will operate a flu clinic at each school location, and a schedule for the flu clinics is posted online. Parent permission is required, but the sign up is easy.
“We have permission forms that are available at the school sites and they are going to post those,” Grabeel said.
The form, once complete, is turned into the school nurse. The district is planning to offer flu shots at up to four schools a day.
“We have a team of nurses that we bring with us and we provide those flu vaccines and then we go to the next school,” Grabeel said.
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What you should you do if your child gets a vaccine from their doctor
Grabeel said the district offers the flu shots on-site as a convenience but many families seek the flu shot from a primary care physician or local pharmacy.
“We don’t always get that reported back to us,” she said. “We encourage parents to let us know, to provide us with that documentation, so we can put that in their student records.”
The district plans to wrap up its student flu clinics by the end of October.
“It is still important to get a flu vaccine,” she said. “It helps prevent illness and we don’t want people to forget about that. This is something that is important for us to do on an annual basis.”
Claudette Riley is the education reporter for the News-Leader. Email news tips to [email protected].
