The survey was commissioned by the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases, a nonprofit group. Its medical director, Dr. William Schaffner, stated that total vulnerability to flu might be larger this 12 months, “with relaxed Covid-19 mitigation strategies, increased travel and the reopening of schools.”
For the survey, greater than 1,110 respondents 18 and older from all 50 states and the District of Columbia answered questions in mid-August that explored attitudes in regards to the flu; Covid-19; pneumococcal disease, which might trigger pneumonia, sepsis and meningitis; and vaccination intentions.
The solutions revealed a stress between beliefs in regards to the worth of the flu vaccination and the intention to get one: 61 % of respondents agreed {that a} shot was the most effective safety towards the flu, however 44 % stated they had been both not sure whether or not they would get one or didn’t intend to take action.
The coronavirus pandemic, nevertheless, has had a constructive impact on behaviors that would assist reduce the impression of the flu. Nearly half of these surveyed stated that due to the pandemic, they had been extra more likely to keep residence from work or faculty in the event that they had been sick, and 54 % stated they might put on a masks at the least generally throughout the flu season.
But there have been racial disparities: 73 % of Black respondents and 62 % of Latinos stated they might put on a masks throughout flu season, in contrast with solely 46 % of white respondents. Black and Latino respondents had been additionally extra more likely to be anxious about being contaminated with Covid and the flu concurrently than white respondents.
