VERITAS: FUMBLE - FLU SHOT CLINIC MANAGER SENDS WRONG MESSAGE

As our new colleague Aliya Jiwan notes in a different item opposite, mixed messages can cripple communications efforts, whether you’re talking about texting while driving or getting the flu shot. Responding to tremendous demand from the public to get the H1N1 vaccine, clinics in Toronto were opened ahead of schedule both in terms of calendar and clock alike. Day one of the public shots (after front-line health care workers were inoculated earlier in the week) was moved up to Thursday, with some clinics opening the doors early after people started lining up hours ahead of the originally scheduled opening times. These early clinics are supposed to be limited to those in “high risk” categories for H1N1 – but that message was swiftly undone by a clinic manager named Susan Blue, who said anyone who showed up would get the shot. “We’re not turning anyone away,” she said. This message is completely at odds with those of all the other public health officials who were urging patience and cautioning people against overwhelming the clinics. Given the fear and borderline panic being displayed by some, the last thing they need to be told is that they can ignore the previously well-communicated rules and come one, come all.