Faced with a nationwide shortage of the flu vaccine, many New Yorkers want to know how they can obtain a much-coveted flu shot. But the reality is, most healthy adults will not (and should not) get flu shots this season. Doctor Neil Calman, a family practice physician in Manhattan and president of the Institute for Urban Family Health, talked with the New York Sun about what New Yorkers can do to avoid the flu.

Q: Most people who want flu shots this season will not be able to get them. What steps should people take to avoid contracting the flu?

A: I think the most important thing is for people not to panic. Most years, the flu has not been a bad epidemic and there’s nothing that would indicate that this year’s flu will be an epidemic. One of the things people can do is to make sure they wash their hands really well before they eat and that they do not shake the hands of someone who is sick. If someone comes into work sneezing and coughing, send them home. It’s just important in the workplace that those who are sick are encouraged not to come in. This flies in the face of what people normally do.

What about flu treatments if you’ve already contracted the flu? Do they work?

If people have flu symptoms, they should seek anti-viral medications – they shorten the time of illness and they make the flu less severe for them. These medications are relatively new and there’s this old sense that there’s nothing you can do about the flu except just stay home. There really is an opportunity at this point to get treated. And the sooner these medications are started, the more effective they are.

Should you replace your toothbrush or lip balm after you get over a flu so you don’t keep brushing with the same germ-infested toothbrush?

You can’t re-catch the flu. Your body develops immunity and you’re not going to be infected with same strain of flu.

Do you have any indication of how bad this flu season is going to be?

No, there really is no way to tell. That’s unfortunate. By the time you know, it’s too late. The flu is a very strange virus. It mutates and changes from year to year. Really each year, for pharmaceutical companies, there is a lot of uncertainty – what strain will cause it in any given year, and whether the vaccine is actually going to be effective.

Is it true that there may not be enough vaccine for the most at-risk groups, such as young children, people over 60, and health care workers?

Yes. There are two problems with the vaccine: The total number of doses and the fact that there is no way to really distribute it exactly to where it’s needed. The problem with a shortage is that you might go to a few places and not find any vaccine, but it can still be plentiful, and be in surplus, somewhere else. The City Department of Health is putting tremendous pressure on providers to refuse vaccine to those not in high- risk categories. There’s actually talk of putting sanctions against doctors who are providing people with vaccines who shouldn’t be.

Are those who live in big cities, like New York, at an increased risk for contracting the flu?

I think if people find themselves in crowded places like subways and buses, with ill people around them, they are certainly more at risk. Out in rural areas, you’re not in contact with so many other people in the course of your everyday existence.

Is this a major national emergency, or is the situation being blown out of proportion?

If there’s a huge flu epidemic it will be an emergency. But if the epidemic is minimal, it won’t have been an emergency. Certain strains turn out to be more deadly than others. There’s no way to know in advance. That’s why people are nervous; it’s all unknown at this point. When you put something in short supply, you create a panic. Really, what I try to do is calm people down. For healthy adults, the flu is really more of an annoyance than a serious medical threat.