John J. Pershing VA Medical Center to host drive-thru flu shot clinic

The John J. Pershing VA Medical Center in Poplar Bluff will offer a free, three-week-long flu shot clinic to local veterans, but unlike in years past, this one will have a new twist.

Drive-thru flu shot clinics will occur between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. daily on weekdays, from Sept. 21 through Oct. 9. 

A tent, according to VAMC Influenza Campaign Coordinator Ashley Aubuchon, will be set up outside for drive-thru immunizations.

“All you need to do is drive to our Poplar Bluff location and come through the main entrance. Then, you’ll need to proceed forward, in your vehicle, to the tent,” Aubuchon said.

The tent, she said, will be set up near the main lobby entrance.

“This is our first time standing up a drive-thru vaccination clinic. Other VA facilities have had drive-thru clinics, but we have not,” said Aubuchon.

The idea, she said, came from a request from “national leadership to designate a non-traditional space that limits exposure.

“We believe a drive-thru clinic is the easiest, safest way to vaccinate our veterans during this time of a pandemic.”

Essentially, Aubuchon said, the goal is to “maintain access to care while minimizing foot traffic.”

Veterans only need to bring their VA identification card.

At the hospital’s Cape Girardeau, Sikeston, Farmington and West Plains clinics in Missouri, and its Paragould and Pocahontas clinics in Arkansas, a single flu shot clinic has been scheduled for Sept. 25.

“If a veteran can’t make it to one of the scheduled clinics, they can get their flu shot at their next scheduled appointment with a nurse,” Aubuchon said.

Veterans also can choose to receive a flu shot at their preferred, in-network community pharmacy or urgent care and can go to http://www.va.gov/find-locations/ to find a provider.

The flu shot, Aubuchon said, is important step in helping prevent the spread of the flu.

“We are not only challenged to observe infection control measures per our national and local policies during COVID-19, but we also have to prevent the spread of flu,” she said. “The flu shot is the best way to slow the spread of flu from person to person.”

The Veterans Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Aubuchon said, recommend everyone age six months and older get a flu shot each year.

“The flu shot is safe and effective, and you cannot get flu from the flu shot,” Aubuchon said. “Because the vaccine gets updated annually, veterans should make sure they get the shot each year in the fall, as soon as flu shots are available. A flu shot will protect you the entire flu season.”