I’ve had my flu jab, have you? – Anthony Deery

The flu vaccine is the best defence we have against flu.

Each year, our Trust runs a flu vaccination programme, where we make it our mission to vaccinate as many of our staff as possible against flu.

We’re now heading in to the fourth week of this year’s campaign and I’m delighted to see that hundreds of our staff have already taken up the offer of a flu jab. I had no hesitation in rolling my sleeve up when Stan Cutcliffe, the Trust’s Senior Infection Prevention and Control Nurse, visited Trust Headquarters last week.

 

It’s vitally important that we do all we can to keep up this momentum over the coming weeks as we must not get complacent or underestimate how devastating flu can be, especially for the vulnerable patient groups we serve.

Public Health England say an average 8,000 people die from flu in England each year and some years that figure reaches 14,000. That’s more than eight times the number of confirmed cases of measles (91) mumps (717) and rubella (5) combined in 2016. I’m sure we can all agree that this number is far, far too many and we all have a duty to protect our patients.

It’s also no secret that frontline healthcare workers are more likely to be exposed to the flu virus than the general public. As many as 1 in 4 of us who work in healthcare services may become infected, and that’s just if we experience what’s considered a ‘mild’ flu season.

The flu vaccine is the single best defence we have against flu and it’s the only effective way to protect yourself, your family and your service users from the virus. If that’s not enough of a reason for you to get your jab, you’ll also get a sweet and a sticker!

 

It’s important to note that these messages aren’t just coming from me. If you’re a doctor, a nurse, or an allied health professional, I urge you to read the letters from the leaders of your profession. They echo the pivotal role you can play and call on you to help dispel some of the most common misconceptions surrounding the flu jab. I’ve lost count of the number of times someone’s said to me that the flu jab gives you flu… it doesn’t. So keep reminding your colleagues to get their jab!

To finish, I’d like to say a big ‘thank you’ to colleagues who’ve already been vaccinated. You really should feel proud of the part you’re playing in keeping the virus out of our services and communities.

Anthony Deery
Director of Nursing, Professions and Quality