Don’t surrender to the flu.
Faculty, residents, staff and volunteers who haven’t received a flu vaccination by Oct. 30 will be required to wear a surgical/procedural mask in patient care areas during flu season, which runs through April 30.
CAN I GET A NO-COST FLU VACCINATION AT UF HEALTH?
Yes. In October, UF Health Shands Occupational Health Services and the UF Student Health Care Center co-host multiple flu vaccination events at UF Health. When both OHS and SHCC staff are on site, all UF faculty, staff and students; UF Health Shands employees and volunteers; and credentialed ARNPs, physician assistants and medical staff can receive a no-cost flu vaccination.
HOW CAN I SHOW THAT I RECEIVED MY VACCINATION?
When you receive your vaccination at UF Health, you’ll be provided with a new orange sticker to display on your ID badge. If you received your flu shot elsewhere, please submit proof of vaccination to OHS to get your sticker.
IF I OPT OUT OF THE FLU VACCINATION, WHERE WILL I HAVE TO WEAR A MASK?
Our leaders will not surrender to the flu! (From left) Ed Jimenez, UF Health Shands CEO; Irene Alexaitis, D.N.P., R.N., NEA-BC, UF Health Shands Hospital chief nursing officer and Nursing and Patient Services vice president; Joseph A. Tyndall, M.D., M.P.H., FACEP, FAAEM, UF College of Medicine interim dean and professor and chair of emergency medicine; and David R. Nelson, M.D., interim senior vice president for health affairs at UF and president of UF Health.
“The influenza virus functions differently than other viruses as it is constantly changing. There is an effort to predict what viruses will circulate each season based on information about flu viruses from the previous season. The important thing to know is that even if the prediction is not a perfect match, you are provided protection by receiving a flu vaccine. Each year that you receive a flu vaccine, you build upon that protection.