While flu vaccinations are a highly recommended, if underutilized, public health measure, they’re especially important for seniors and particularly those seniors who reside in residential care facilities. Flu can be a serious and even fatal illness in older people. Now researchers from Brown University have found that upping the usual amount of flu vaccine in nursing home residents can cut the risk of hospitalization for flu significantly. Published in Lancet Respiratory Medicine the research demonstrated that a dose of 4x the usual amount could help even the most frail seniors avoid hospitalization. Find out more about this important new research Here. And if you’ve been avoiding a flu shot because the thought of a needle in your arm is too much to stomach, you’ll need to know this: Clinical trials are now underway to eliminate the shot, and switch to a “patch” that contains tiny dissolving needles to painlessly transmit the flu vaccine. In preliminary results, these new patches, which patients could self-administer, seem to be as effective as old-fashioned shots. Check out more about this vaccination innovation Here.