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SIOUX CITY, Iowa – As temperatures drop, the chances of getting the flu start to increase. Influenza vaccines protect many people, but what about those who have to fend for themselves?
Siouxland District Health and the Street Medicine Project are meeting Thursday night to offer flu vaccines to homeless people.
Iowa ranks among the states with the lowest number of people at risk of homelessness, but for those living on the streets, catching the flu can quickly become a matter of life and death.
The C-D-C estimates that between 12,000 and 56,000 people could die of the flu each year.
"You know it's something we take for granted, have this place to go when your patients are feeding, and you imagine not having it and having the extra stress of being sick with it." the flu, do it here, "says Heidi Nelson.
"It gives us some peace of mind, we understand the situation," said Robert Bailey, a soup kitchen volunteer.
A similar clinic last week provided nearly two dozen vaccinations. Symptoms of flu include fever, chills, sore throat, runny nose and body aches.
The annual flu vaccination is especially important for children under 5, adults over 65, pregnant women and people with other medical conditions.
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