When: September 15, 2004
Where: Hamilton, MT
Institute: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)

With the flu season around the corner, four experts on the flu vaccine spoke to nearly 100 people to enlighten them about the history of the flu virus and to encourage them to be vaccinated against it. At a public symposium in Montana, the experts spoke about the flu's dramatic history since the Middle Ages, focusing on the deadly "Spanish Flu" pandemic of 1918–19. They answered audience questions afterward.

The symposium was sponsored by NIAID's Rocky Mountain Laboratories, a state-of-the-art research facility for studying infectious microbes that cause disease in humans and animals. Speakers included NIAID vaccine researcher Kanta Subbarao, M.D.; Herbert Swick, M.D., executive director of the Institute of Medicine and Humanities in Missoula; George Risi, M.D., director of the St. Patrick Hospital infection control program in Missoula; and Charmell Owens, emergency preparedness coordinator for the Ravalli County Public Health Department.

Next Steps
For more information, contact Ken Pekoc at (406) 375-9690.