By: Jessica Cihacek
jcihacek@kcautv.com
If you've already gotten the flu shot this year, you're not alone.
Hundreds of Siouxlanders have filtered their way through the Mercy Medical Clinic in South Sioux City to get theirs, including Mario Andrade of Sioux City, who remembers all too well his bout with the flu a few years ago.
Mario recalls, "Throwing up, using the restroom, just not feeling good at all, really."
And every year since? He's made it a point to roll up his sleeve.
Mario says, "I used to not believe in the flu shot, then I just figured, hey, I might as well try to prevent it, and since I have been getting it, I've noticed I really haven't been getting sick as much."
It's people like Mario keeping the Mercy staff busy this year.
Dr. David Ensz says folks aren't so much coming in with the flu, they're coming in to prevent it.
Dr. Ensz says, "One of the biggest reasons for that is when the H1N1 virus came around, I believe 3-4 years ago, that scared a lot of people."
And while this year's flu shot protects against H1N1, it could be another month or so before we find out whether a brand new strain has made its mark on Siouxland.
But not to worry, Dr. Ensz says major outbreaks tend to happen once every 10 years. That H1N1 was probably it for a while.
