October is flu shot month for students, faculty, staff

The first University of Wisconsin–Madison flu shot clinic of the season will be held Friday, Oct. 1, at the SERF, 715 W. Dayton St., from noon-5 p.m.. Students, faculty and staff can drop in without an appointment, get their seasonal flu shot out of the way and be treated to some early Halloween candy.

Walk-in campus flu shot clinics will be held at more than a dozen additional locations through Nov. 2. (For a complete list, see below.)

“Influenza is a community-wide health issue,” says Sarah Van Orman, M.D., executive director of University Health Services (UHS). “We saw that very clearly last year when the entire campus worked together to lower the risk of spreading H1N1 to their friends, colleagues and family.

“Holding campus clinics to make it easier for students and employees to get a seasonal flu shot is one of the best things the university can do to help support people’s health throughout the academic year.”

The 2010-11 flu shot includes vaccine against H1N1 and against two other influenza viruses (an H3N2 virus and an influenza B virus). The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) now recommends that everyone 6 months of age and older get a seasonal flu shot every year.

“I’m pleased to see this CDC recommendation,” says Van Orman, a physician who also sees patients in the UHS primary care clinic. “The numbers of UW–Madison students getting flu shots has been going up steadily for the past three years. This year, my hope is that employees will also turn out in high numbers to take this simple step to decrease their chances of getting very sick. Anyone who’s ever had the flu will tell you they’re not eager to repeat the experience.”

According to the CDC, influenza is a contagious respiratory disease caused by a virus. It can cause mild to severe illness, and in some cases, even death. Typical symptoms include fever, sore throat and/or dry cough, runny nose, headaches, body aches and extreme fatigue.

This year, most of the campus walk-in clinic locations will offer shots to both students and employees, although they will have separate registration lines and separate nursing staffs to administer the vaccinations.

“We did it this way to maximize campus resources to get the greatest number of people vaccinated as early as possible in the season,” says Van Orman, who also chairs the Campus Health Issues Planning committee, the group that coordinates campuswide influenza planning and response. “The lines should still move quickly, as they have in previous years.”

Student flu shots are free and given by UHS because they’re covered by the student health fee. As in previous years, UW–Madison employees will receive their flu shots from Home Health United nursing staff as part of the university’s occupational health and safety programming.

“We’ve chosen locations that we believe will be convenient to large numbers of people, and we’ve added some new ones this year, such as Eagle Heights,” says Van Orman. “We’ve scheduled clinics for both early and late in the day and all throughout the month. We’re hoping everyone on campus who wants a flu shot can find a time and place here that works for their schedule.”

Walk-in clinics for both students and employees are:

• The SERF, Oct. 1, noon-5 p.m. (UW-Madison ID required for building entry)
• Kronshage Hall/Holt Commons (two dates): Oct. 5, 4-7 p.m.; and Nov. 2, 4-7 p.m.
• Memorial Union, Oct. 11, 10:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. (Tripp Commons)
• Welcome Center, 21 N. Park St, Oct. 14, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. (Rooms 1106/1108)
• Eagle Heights, Oct. 14, 4-7 p.m. (611 Eagle Heights, Room 135)
• Health Sciences Learning Center (two dates): Oct. 19, 10:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. (Room 1325); and Oct. 28, 2:30-6:30 p.m. (Room 1345)
• WARF, Oct. 19, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. (Room 132)
• Chadbourne Hall, Oct. 19, 4-7 p.m.
• Medical Sciences Center, 1300 University Ave., Oct. 21, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. (Room 2010)

Walk-in clinics for students only are:

• University Health Services, 333 East Campus Mall, sixth floor Green Clinic, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m., Oct. 4-29

Walk-in clinics for employees only are:

• Physical Sciences Lab, Stoughton, Oct. 12, 3-5 p.m. (large conference room)
• Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital, 2015 Linden Drive (Room 2255). Special late-night hours: 10:30 p.m.-1:30 a.m., Oct. 20.
• Wisconsin State Lab of Hygiene, 2601 Agriculture Drive, Oct. 14, 8 a.m.-noon (the Fish Bowl Room)
• AVRL, 585 Science Drive, Oct. 8, 11 a.m.-1 p.m. (conference room)
• WISPIC, 6001 Research Park, Oct. 28, 11 a.m.-1 p.m.

Additional information for students, faculty and staff:

• Go to the University Health Services home page, http://www.uhs.wisc.edu, for more information. Click on the orange box that says “Flu Shots” for a Google map to all the flu shot clinic locations.
• For more information about seasonal influenza from the CDC, visit

Faculty and staff: Unfortunately, these clinics cannot offer flu shots to spouses/partners or children.

Bring your health insurance card. If you have Dean Care, Group Health Cooperative, Physicians Plus or Unity, payment will be processed directly to your health insurance provider. Otherwise, there will be a $30 fee for the shot (payable by cash, check, Visa or Mastercard). You will receive a receipt to submit to your health insurance provider for possible reimbursement. As an alternative to the injectable vaccine, FluMist will also be available for $32.