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MACON, MO -- Answer a few questions and get a quick immunization…all while sitting in the comfort of your car. That was purpose of a drive-thru flu clinic in one community.  The Macon County Health Department held their annual free flu clinic Tuesday.

Macon County Health Department Administrator Judy Rushton stressed the importance of getting immunized and shared which groups are most at risk.

“It is extremely important.  We found that the flu can really be detrimental to the elderly and the young.  But, we found that kids that really spread it are those kids in school who have ball games…they interact.  So we’re also doing some school clinics this year through a special federal grant,” Ruston explained.

She says the department has already done clinics at four schools and given about 375 shots.  She said they have three more schools to go.

Rushton tells us that the past clinics have been successful and that her office has received a good response from the public.

“What we’ve heard back from people who’ve done it in the past years is they love it because they can stay in their car. They don’t have to get out, especially if they’re elderly, and get the wheel chair or walker.  It’s easy.  We fill out the paperwork for them.  We have students that help us from nursing schools and from the community.  And then they just go on through and it’s a very quick process. We are really pretty organized.  I think they like to show that they’re part of the community exercise,” said Rushton.

She told us that this drive-thru clinic serves two purposes. One is to get the greatest number of people immunized and the other is to help her department train for a catastrophe.

“This is the way we actually practice our emergency exercise.  So if we had to get a massive amount of medications or injections to 15,000 people that we have in our county, this is how we practice that.”

If you live in Macon County and missed today’s drive-thru clinic, you can still get immunized.  There will be an office clinic on Thursday, October 21, 2010. Walk-ins will be welcomed after that.  You can get the shot Monday through Thursday anytime between 8 am and 5pm.

Their office is located at 503 North Missouri Street in Macon, Missouri. You can call them at (660) 385-4711.