I know her to be a real nurse as well as a lover of heels. I'm unconcerned about the flu shot but am slightly uncomfortable that she hasn't been vaccinated against tuberculosis given that she works at hospitals in two cities with large immigrant populations.

Since I know of the one case I suppose there are others, I think this "....... everyone" is just marketing bluster, something to encourage patients to have the shot. That's fair enough but we shouldn't take it to be literally true.

I don't agree with the flu shot either....I think a positive state of mind, and good balanced dier....and good hand washing like they teach you in hospitals works for me....my 3 men in my household have had 2 or 3 colds each this year, I have escaped them all.....when my boys were younger and they got the sickness bug I was the only one who never got it even tho I took care of them because I washed my hands all the time.....i've seen so many people have the shot and then get sick (not complete flue sick) but still sick, so its not for me!!!

I should of said 'everyone working in hospitals, etc in Canada. The flu shot for everyone was mandatory when I worked in a hospital nearly 40 years ago, and still is today. If your nurse is working in Canada could it be she has a severe allergy to the vaccine? That might excuse her.

Im not denying its cold, its cold for 3 or 4 months. Whinging about it wont change that though so you might as well accept it for what it is and make the best of it, or else life in Canada is going to drag on over the winter.

3 or 4 months is a lot of time to be cooped up inside, and cant possibly be good for your mental or physical well-being IMO. I used to go a bit stir crazy, but since having kids and getting involved in the "typical" stuff they do in the winter, skating, skiing etc Ive come to actually look forward to the change of seasons and the opportunities presented by that.

When its really cold, -25, -30, then Ive no great desire to be outside either, but above that you can dress appropriately and be comfortable enough to spend a morning or an afternoon out enjoying yourself.

brilliant

Its probably important to make the distinction that true influenza, and an annoying head cold are two entirely different things. Ones a minor inconvenience that the flu shot wont have any effect on, and the other is a potentially lethal virus and public health risk to a large vulnerable section of society.

The shot is designed to protect against one, and not the other. Most years we are lucky enough not to have to deal with a deadly and virulent strain of flu, but the risk is there every year non the less.

If you think diet and positive state of mind are going to protect you against exposure to virulent strain of influenza, then good luck to you.

She works primarily in the UK but is still nominally an employee of a hospital in Canada, she takes a shift a couple of times a year so as to stay on the payroll. I don't know what regulations there may be in London, in Toronto she was able to conscientously object to vaccination.

By your own arguments above it's a not a large section of society, it's some old people and some sickly children. And then it's only once a decade.

Not in 1918 it wasnt...

the point is I dont necessarily expect to be exposed to Diphtheria or Hep B or Typhoid fever, but Ive been vaccinated to protect myself.

For the time it takes to get a flu shot Id rather just roll up a sleve and have it done in case its a bad year and it protects me or those I come into contact with.

No one has yet spelled out a down side that makes sense to me.

Oh, I see no harm in you doing it, go ahead if you want to. I don't even mind the taxpayer funding it. I do bridle though at the implied superiority of shot takers, the "civic duty" argument, one may as well say that the rest us have a civic duty to smoke a box of Marlboro a day so as unburden the health service asap.

The free immunization clinic I went to was in a senior's centre on the way to the pub. I had a free coffee and chatted with some old guy about his heart surgery for 8 min and back to business.

Now if that's the nurse that gave the shoot, I'd get one.

And a working immune system.

Phew. Well that's alright then.

ha ha, that's one of the funniest things I have read today..
Maybe it's a life they need to get first, not a move to Canada.

Probably
Some of the petty posts/posters on here are a bit disturbing