Page 12 - BusinessWest September 28, 2020

Editorial
Supporting Entrepreneurs Is Critical
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Over the years, we’ve written a number of times about the importance of promoting entrepreneurship and mentor- ing those trying to start and grow their own businesses.
This component of economic development, one that is often overlooked amid efforts to attract large businesses, open new industrial parks, and grow new business sectors like biotech, is vital because small businesses have always been the key to the growth and vitality of individual communities and regions like Western Mass.
Just as important, these small businesses — everything from restaurants to dry-cleaning establishments; from dance studios to clothing stores — help give these communities their identity and make them more livable.
And that’s why we’ve been a strong supporter of what has become a movement of sorts in this region to encourage entrepre- neurship and help those who have made the decision to put their name over the door — figuratively if not, in many cases, literally. Within this movement has been the creation and development
of what’s been called the entrepreneurship ecosystem, which has many moving parts, from agencies that support entrepreneurs to colleges with programs in this subject, to venture-capital firms that provide the vital fuel to help businesses get to the next stage.
This ecosystem has always been important, but it’s perhaps even more important now in the middle of this pandemic. That’s because — and you know this already, but we need to remind you — a large number of small businesses are imperiled by this crisis. Their survival is not assured by any means, and as the calendar turns to fall — with winter not far behind and no relief in sight
Opinion
from this pandemic — uncertainty about the fate of many busi- nesses only grows.
As the story on page 6 reveals, agencies and individuals that are part of the ecosystem have been working to help businesses navi- gate their way through this whitewater, be it with help securing a grant from the local chamber of commerce or a Paycheck Protec- tion Program loan, or making a successful pivot to a different kind of service or a new twist on an old one that would help with all- important cash flow.
Meanwhile, the work of mentoring those in business or trying to get into business goes on, often with powerful results, as that same story recounts. Initiatives such as WIT (Women Innovators and Trailblazers) creates matches that provide rewards to both parties, but especially the young (and, in some cases, not so young) women working to turn ideas into businesses and smaller businesses into larger, more established ventures.
It would have been easy to put such initiatives on the shelf for several months until the pandemic passes, but we don’t know when it’s going to pass, and the business, if we want to call it that, of sup- porting people like Nicole Ortiz, who recently put her food truck on the road in Holyoke, and Leah Kent, who wants to grow her busi- ness that supports writers and helps them get works published, must go on.
And it does, because, as we said, the creation and development of small businesses isn’t just one component of economic-develop- ment activity in this region; it is perhaps the most important com- ponent of all. v
Protect Yourself from the Flu
WBy Dr. Armando Paez
hile experts cannot predict the
severity of one flu season from
another, this upcoming season will be unprecedented and can pose a
severe threat due to the ongoing COVID- 19 pandemic.
The very protection advice we have been stressing for COVID-19 — wearing a mask, frequent hand washing, social dis- tancing — is what is going to protect many people from the flu this year. But the best protection of all is to get your flu shot each year.
Flu season usually begins in the fall around October, but doesn’t peak until December through February. It can some- times last until May. Because there could be a possible second wave of COVID-19 coinciding with the flu, getting your flu shot this year is more important than ever before.
Already in advance of the onset of the 2020-21 flu season, the CDC is reminding people to get vaccinated sooner than later, with October being a good time to get vac-
cinated. It’s important to realize it can take up to two weeks for the vaccine to build up antibodies to protect you from the flu.
Once again, the CDC recommends all people be vaccinated against the flu, espe- cially pregnant women and people with chronic health conditions. For the 2020-21 season, the flu vaccines were updated to better match viruses expected to be circu- lating in the U.S. The CDC has stated that providers may administer any licensed, age-appropriate flu vaccine with no pref- erence for any one vaccine over another, including the shot or nasal spray.
People who should not get the flu vac- cine include children younger than 6 months and those with severe, life-threat- ening allergies to flu vaccine and any of its ingredients.
In addition to the elderly, vaccination
is particularly important for younger chil- dren who are also at high risk for serious flu complications, as well as those with heart disease, and pregnant women. The most important complication that can affect both high-risk adults and children is pneumonia. The flu can also aggravate and worsen chronic conditions such as heart
disease, diabetes, and asthma.
Also, if you have a weakened immune
system after contracting COVID-19, it can leave you at risk for getting a more severe case of the flu, or vice versa.
I’m always asked by those skeptical about getting vaccinated, “can the flu shot give you the flu?” The answer is no. This year, I’m also being asked, “can the flu shot protect you from COVID-19?” Unfortunate- ly, the answer is also no, but we’re hopeful for a vaccine against COVID-19 early next year or sooner.
While the flu vaccine is not 100% effec- tive, the CDC noted that recent studies show that flu vaccination reduces the risk of flu illness by between 40% and 60% among the overall population during sea- sons when most circulating flu viruses are well-matched to the flu vaccine.
Remember, it’s never too late to get your flu shot, preferably before flu viruses begin spreading in the community around the end of October. u
Dr. Armando Paez is chief of Infectious Diseases at Baystate Medical Center.
12 SEPTEMBER 28, 2020
OPINION
BusinessWest