Protect yourself against flu with free vaccine

At-risk groups across the district are being urged to take up the free flu vaccination.

Public Health England's (PHE) national seasonal flu campaign has launched, encouraging uptake of the influenza (flu) vaccine amongst the most at-risk groups, which are people of all ages with a health condition, pregnant women and children aged two to four.

For most healthy people, flu is an unpleasant but usually limiting disease with recovery time taking up to a week. However, older people, the very young, pregnant women and those with a weakened immune system or health condition (such as asthma, diabetes or heart disease) are at particular risk from the more serious effects of flu.

According to the Health Protection Agency, people with flu are 11 times more likely to die from it if they have an underlying health condition. Despite this, only 47% of people aged six months to 65 years living with an underlying condition in Northamptonshire took up the offer of the free flu vaccine during 2013/14, says PHE

Last year's flu season was less severe than some, but flu is an unpredictable virus and it is impossible to predict the impact of the disease and how many serious cases there might be as new strains might circulate each year with varying intensity.

Those people who are offered the free flu vaccination are being encouraged to visit their GP as soon as they can and take up the offer of this simple but effective vaccine. It's important for at-risk groups to be protected against flu during the winter months to reduce the risk of severe infection. It's a free service because it is needed so people are being encouraged not to put it off.

Details of the flu clinics are available form your GP. For further information about flu including a video showing how flu spreads visit www.nhs.uk/conditions/flu