This article appeared in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Read more here.
With flu season in full swing and COVID-19 cases surging nationwide, the American Nurses Association (ANA) is urging adults and children alike to get vaccinated.
“The American Nurses Association (ANA) continues to urge all eligible adults and children to get vaccinated against COVID-19, Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection (RSV), the flu, and if eligible, to receive a booster,” the association announced in a news release. “The CDC reports that, while respiratory illness activity and the circulation of new variants is increasing across the United States, vaccination rates for COVID-19, influenza, and RSV remain low.”
According to the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a total 1,167,210 people have died due to COVID-19 since Jan. 1, 2020. A total 35,801 people were hospitalized due to the virus in the past week alone, as the U.S. experiences a significant spike in cases.
“Additionally, the variant JN.1, which was detected only in September, accounts for 39% of cases according to pre-holiday reports from the CDC,” ANA noted. “Despite most hospitals and health care settings having eased or eliminated masking requirements last spring, some health systems are reinstating mask requirements to slow the spread of infection given rising cases of respiratory illnesses, hospitalizations, and even deaths across the United States.”
ANA also called on nurses to help spread awareness about the importance of vaccination in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“ANA, in alignment with its longstanding position on immunizations, emphasizes that effective protection of public health requires that all individuals receive immunizations against vaccine-preventable diseases,” ANA president Jennifer Mensik Kennedy, PhD, MBA, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN, said in a press release. “Considering increasing respiratory virus activity, ANA calls on nurses to continue to educate the public and support evidence informed prevention measures as their ethical duty to protect our patients and communities.”