Western Wayne Today

In the midst of COVID-19, it could be easy to forget to take flu season seriously, but Dr. Allison Weinmann, an infectious disease specialist at Henry Ford Health System, recently reminded WJR's "The Paul W. Smith Show" listeners why getting a flu shot is especially important this year.

There is the potential for the flu to actually make the COVID-19 situation even worse, creating what some call “twin-demic,” Smith told his listeners on a recent show. Just one of the complications is the overlap of symptoms.

“If you’re concerned and you’re severely ill with any respiratory virus, you should see your doctor,” Weinmann told Smith. “Or if you’re really sick, go to the emergency room.”

Dr. Allison Weinmann | Henry Ford Health System

So far, no flu cases have been discovered in the community, she said. But, unlike the coronavirus, there already is a vaccine for the flu, so there’s no reason to not be proactive.

“We have plentiful vaccine, and now’s the time,” Weinmann told Smith.

Weinmann admitted that picking the right time to get a flu shot can be a “tricky balance,” with age and timing usually affecting recommendations, but she said that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has always recommended people begin getting flu shots in September, or as soon as it becomes available.

“It takes two weeks from the time you get your shot to the time you get maximal protection,” Weinmann told Smith. “It’s not a perfect vaccine, so it’s really important that people go out and get their vaccine this year, because we don’t want to see, as you said, that twin-demic.”

Weinmann said that the current measures being taken to prevent the spread of the coronavirus should help with the flu as well, such as social distancing, mask wearing and greater emphasis on handwashing. 

“Every year in America, somewhere between 5,000 and about 60,000 people actually die from influenza, which is not an insignificant number of people, and we have a way to prevent it, which is immunization,” Weinmann told Smith.