How to Get Vaccinated Against Meningitis

A meningitis vaccine should be received at age eleven and again when a young adult enters college. Although the meningitis disease can make a person very sick and is often fatal, the vaccine is easy to get.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. Attend all of your yearly physicals. Your family doctor maintains a schedule of all the vaccines that you should receive, along with the tests that are required at every age. At the appropriate age, he will administer the meningitis vaccines and boosters.

2. Make an appointment with your local health department. If you don't have a family doctor, the health department is an inexpensive place to receive all of the vaccines you will need over a lifetime, including the meningitis vaccine. They will send reminders when the next booster is needed, and the services are often free to low-income individuals.

3. Stop by the clinic. For college students, the most convenient place to receive health services is the campus clinic. Because many universities are committed to preventing meningitis outbreaks, there may be times reserved specifically for vaccination. If there isn't, call for an appointment or drop in. They will be happy to assist you, but often there is an inexpensive fee required.

Tips & Warnings

• Meningitis vaccines are automatically given to military recruits and anyone working in and around the disease.
• People with immune disorders are susceptible to many diseases, including meningitis, and should get the vaccine.