On Friday, Oct. 24, Bethel Park schools is partnering with Pathways to SmartCare’s Vaccines For Students Program to provide a flu shot for all students. Parents will have the option to choose one of the two different immunization types: Flu Mist, a gentle mist that is sprayed in the nose, or an injectable vaccine that is administered into the upper arm muscle.

Flu can be a very serious illness, causing fever, chills, headache, fatigue, and aches. The illness can lead to long term school absences and possibly hospitalization. The flu is incredibly contagious and can be easily spread to others in the home, including grandparents, younger siblings or babies.

On the day of the clinic, parents and guardians may also opt to be immunized by informing the school nurse before Friday, Oct. 10.

The flu vaccine is recommended for all those above the age of six months. Students in large schools are at high risk due to the constant close proximity to large numbers of people, making schools a breeding ground for influenza.

The CDC list children under the age of five, adults over 65, pregnant women, those with respiratory neurological and pulmonary diseases, and the obese as groups with an increased risk factor.

Symptoms of influenza include: fever (although not all flu victims have fever), cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, aches, headache, chills, fatigue, and diarrhea/vomiting (in rare cases). If while diagnosed with the flu you experience any of the following: trouble breathing, pain or pressure in the chest, dizziness/confusion, or rapid breathing- it is recommended that you seek aid.

Through this school wide vaccination program, it is hoped that the number of students in Bethel Park diagnosed with the flu will be lower this year.

Parental consent forms for the vaccination must be turned in by Friday, Oct. 10 to the school nurse. The vaccination program on the 24th is an active effort by the school district to prevent the spread of this potentially serious disease through the Bethel Park schools.