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B.C. Leads Canada With Flu Vaccine Rates

CBC  |  Posted: 05/10/2012 5:16 pm Updated: 05/12/2012 4:24 pm

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A new "flu report card" says B.C. tops the country when it comes to influenza vaccination, but experts say the results still show more people should be getting the vaccine countrywide


The B.C. and Quebec Lung Associations put together the report, which rates provinces according to vaccination and self reported flu rates, based on a series of surveys by Ipsos-Ried.


B.C. got an A for its 52 per cent rate of vaccination — the highest in the country — and its 10 per cent flu rate.


But Quebec got an F for both the lowest rate of vaccination in the country at 27 per cent and the highest rate of flu at 25 per cent. Dominique Massie, Executive Director of the Quebec Lung Association said it should be a wake call from his province.


"Clearly Quebeckers are not ready for a severe flu season," said Massie in a statement released on Thursday.


Dr. Menn Bagtian of the B.C. Lung Association said even provinces with top ranking like B.C. can still do more.


"We are proud of our score. But still, half of our population was not vaccinated last season. This poses a serious threat to more vulnerable populations who can experience serious consequences from the flu. And next season will likely be a whole new game."


Overall, flu vaccination rates in Canada were very low with only 36 per cent of Canadian adults reporting that they were vaccinated, according to the study.


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Flanman10
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02:44 PM on 05/12/2012
This "report" is nothing but propaganda produced by the BC and Quebec Lung Assns, likely financed by the vaccine manufacturers. The media then laps this stuff up, how about a little investigative reporting? The data comes from an Ipsos (known for their polical polling) on-line survey of 1019 Canadians. The respondents were expected to diagnose their own flu symptoms. 14 of 135 BC respondents reported having the flu and 62 of 249 Quebec respondents reported getting the flu. The report then suggests that the difference is wholly due to the respective vaccine rates between the provinces. I would suggest that, perhaps the much greater smoking rate in Quebec might be enough to grossly skew these results.
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Monster Mash
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11:41 PM on 05/10/2012
The first and only time I got the flu shot, I ended up with a severe flue and strep throat. I also ended up passing that along to everyone else in my family. Never took it again and alhamdulillah I never got the flu either.

Don't see myself getting the flu shot ever again.
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MissingTheExpos
Most geniuses are conceited...I'm the exception.
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10:49 PM on 05/10/2012
I got a flu shot a couple years ago. Got the flu.
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samseed
We're here for a good time, not a long time
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05:25 PM on 05/10/2012
People need to get sick right? If we keep pumping ourselves full of vaccines, dont the viruses and such just get stronger in the next generations? I hate to say it, but people have to die, make room for the next group of people who have a chance at fighting these things off. I have an Auto-immune disease, where I have been encouraged to get a flu shot. Who can trust what is in them? The more research I do, the more I find links to Autism and much more. And its kind of intimidating knowing that you cant send your kid to school without all their vaccines, and in other places in the world they actually force you to take them. People arent getting any healthier these days, and I dont think it has anything to do with them not getting vaccines.
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compro01
Conservatism : Policy-based evidence making
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06:16 PM on 05/10/2012
1. No, people do not need to get sick.

2. No, vaccines do not work that way. They are not like antibiotics.

3. There is no reputable research showing a link between vaccines and autism. That hypothesis has been shown to be false in a great many studies.

4. People are getting healthier these days, as evidenced by life expectancy continuing to rise.
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samseed
We're here for a good time, not a long time
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07:04 PM on 05/10/2012
Ok so maybe people dont need to be sick, but they are bound to get sick. You're probably right about vaccines not being like antibiotics, but I have big doubts about pumping ourselves full of things that are suppose to work for most people. and that for a few could cause all sorts of problems. I think its better to let nature take its course, you would probably disagree compro01. I was diagnosed with Crohn's disease at 21, a good chance it had something to do with being on Accutane. They say scientifically they cant prove that it was caused by that, but I have met and spoken to way too many people who mysteriously had the exact same thing happen. When i look around at the people I know, the healthiest are living closer to nature. Everyone else who is living in the city and in suburbs, has one health issue or another, be it Diabetes, Cancer, kids with Autism, I could go on and on and its sad. We may be living longer, but I think it is because they can sustain us for so long, but that doenst mean we are healthier as a whole. Cancer rates are skyrocketing, what is it now, 1 in 3 will get cancer in their lifetime?
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