With the H1N1 vaccine now readily available, the swine flu panic that swept the nation in 2009 has begun to ease and the lines at clinics have disappeared. But some health officials worry that with the flu season still going strong, H1N1 could take many by surprise.
According to Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the interest in getting vaccinated has slowed too soon.
"There is a sense that it's over, but it's too soon to say its over, because it is early in the flu season still, and H1N1 has been very difficult to predict," Frieden said.
Some experts even believe that a third wave of H1N1 could be on the horizon. Children and young people are populations that are still at risk.
Quotes
"There is a sense that it's over, but it's too soon to say its over, because it is early in the flu season still, and H1N1 has been very difficult to predict." - Dr. Thomas Frieden, director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
"Unfortunately, right now, most of the world believes that H1N1 pandemic of 2009 is over and done with, and they have written its obituary." - Dr. Michael Osterholm, director, University of Minnesota Center for Infectious Disease Research
"For children, for young adults, the rate of death from H1N1 is at least five times higher than from a usual flu season. And, for children, at least, it has been as bad as the 1968 pandemic. So, by all means, it has not been a 1918, it has not been a 1957, so far. But it's a disease that has made many people sick, many of them severely ill, and, sadly, has killed more than 10,000 Americans." - Dr. Thomas Frieden
Warm Up Questions
1. What is the flu?
2. What have you heard about swine flu? What are the symptoms?
3. Have you had the swine flu vaccine? Why or why not?
Discussion Questions
1. What is your school doing to protect against swine flu?
2. Are you nervous about the flu? Why or why not?
3. Do you think that people should be more concerned about it than they are?
4. Why do you think that the fervor for the vaccine has declined in recent months? Does it just have to do with the availability of the H1N1 vaccine? What could be some other factors?
Additional Resources
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