The flu shotTo get the flu shot or not to get the flu shot? This is a huge and controversial question that millions of Americans today ask themselves every year. There are many myths surrounding the topic of the flu vaccine that lead people to question the effectiveness of the drug. Safety for our families and loved ones is what we aim to achieve, but what are the pros and cons of this vaccine? What are the consequences and what are the myths, but more importantly: what are the reasons why we should get it? In this article, you will learn the many reasons for flu vaccination and how it affects different populations, starting from children to the elderly. First, what is the flu vaccine and what is it for? According to Wikipedia, influenza vaccination is an annual vaccination that uses a specific vaccine for a given year to protect against the highly variable influenza virus. Each influenza vaccine contains antigens representing three (trivalent vaccine) or four (quadrivalent vaccine) strains of the influenza virus: one strain of influenza virus type A subtype H1N1, one strain of influenza virus type A subtype H3N2 and one or two strains of the influenza B virus. Flu vaccines can be given via intramuscular injection, also known as a flu shot, or nasal spray. How does it work? Once you get the flu shot, it sort of “tricks” your immune system into thinking you are infected with the flu. Therefore, your body produces antibodies against the virus. These antibodies bind to the influenza virus and target it for destruction. So when someone actually comes into contact with the real live virus, the body is armed and ready to fight the disease before it even happens......middle of paper......providing the population with free flu vaccinations . If this is the problem, why hesitate? The CDC provides families with a free flu vaccination each year. Students at Stanbridge University have been able to attend some flu clinics this year and help out with getting the flu vaccine. I myself was assigned to the Long Beach Flu Clinic where we were able to administer the vaccination to Long Beach firefighters. Now we don't want our firefighters getting sick, do we? I was very happy to be a part of this flu clinic and to know that I did my part in reducing the death rate or at least reducing the likelihood of our firefighters getting sick and ill from the flu virus. I was also able to attend the flu clinic at my assigned Garden Grove hospital rotation, where we students practiced administering intramuscular injections on the Garden Grove staff.