{"id":20838,"date":"2024-05-22T13:24:11","date_gmt":"2024-05-22T03:24:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/metronorth.health.qld.gov.au\/extranet\/?p=20838"},"modified":"2024-05-24T07:55:07","modified_gmt":"2024-05-23T21:55:07","slug":"get-your-free-flu-shot","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/metronorth.health.qld.gov.au\/extranet\/newsletters\/news-at-the-royal\/get-your-free-flu-shot","title":{"rendered":"Reasons to get your free flu shot"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Patient

Vaccination helps protect against severe disease and complications from influenza.<\/p><\/div>\n

As we enter flu season, our experts highlight the risks of influenza, as well as the rewards of getting vaccinated in an informative vidcast. Infectious Diseases Staff Specialist Dr Krispin Hajkowicz and Metro North Public Health Unit Director Daniel Francis dish out the useful information on the upcoming flu season.<\/h4>\n

Dr Hajkowicz particularly encouraged parents to get their children vaccinated, after low levels of coverage last year.<\/p>\n

Free vaccinations are available for staff until the end of May on the Level 2 walkway between the Ned Hanlon Building James Mayne Building.<\/p>\n

Find all the details \u2013 and watch the vidcast.<\/a><\/p>\n

How is this flu season looking?<\/h3>\n

Following a big drop off in flu cases during the worst of COVID-19, when people were isolating and overseas travel was restricted, 2022 and 2023 saw flu seasons that started early and peaked early, but then dragged on and ended late. Daniel Francis says the early signs are that 2024 is following a similar pattern.<\/p>\n

North America\u2019s flu season, often an indicator or how ours will go, was moderately bad.<\/p>\n

Why get vaccinated?<\/h3>\n

Vaccination helps protect against severe disease and complications from influenza.<\/p>\n

Tragically, 13 children died from flu in Australia last year.<\/p>\n

If you get admitted to hospital with influenza you have about a 7.5 per cent chance of ending up in ICU, which is a higher rate than COVID.<\/p>\n

Dr Hajkowicz says there are a multitude of reasons to get vaccinated.<\/p>\n

    \n
  • Protect yourself:<\/strong> \u201cInvest half an hour, 20 minutes in coming in and getting vaccinated, you might be saving a week in bed, and a couple of weeks of illness after that.\u201d<\/li>\n
  • Protect your family:<\/strong> \u201cGet our children vaccinated, that\u2019s where real harm happens.\u201d<\/li>\n
  • Protect your colleagues:<\/strong> \u201cRoll up your shirt sleeve and come and say \u2018gday\u2019 to your vaccination team and hopefully we\u2019ll have a good flu season.\u201d<\/li>\n
  • Protect your patients:<\/strong> \u201cWe have some of the most vulnerable patients in QLD at RBWH and across Metro North.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    The Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) recommends influenza vaccination for all people aged 6 months and over (who doesn\u2019t have a contraindication to vaccination).<\/p>\n

    What\u2019s in the flu vaccine?<\/h3>\n

    There are eight vaccines for flu in Australia and Dr Hajkowicz says he \u201chas full confidence in all of them\u201d.<\/p>\n

    Flu vaccines are all inactivated, so you can\u2019t catch flu from the vaccine. It\u2019s extensively tested and checked.<\/p>\n

    Those available in Australia vary from year to year, depending on what strains are considered the most likely to affect us.<\/p>\n

    There are egg-based, adjuvanted, high-dose and cell-based vaccines available.<\/p>\n

    Egg-based influenza vaccines are prepared from purified inactivated influenza virus that has been cultivated in embryonated hen’s eggs, and they include the standard dose. It\u2019s fine to have this vaccine even if you have an egg allergy.<\/p>\n

    Cell-based influenza vaccines are prepared from purified inactivated influenza virus that has been propagated in Madin-Darby canine kidney (MDCK) cells.<\/p>\n

    Adjuvanted and high-dose influenza vaccines are both \u2018enhanced\u2019 vaccines specifically designed to increase the response of the immune system to the vaccine. They are suitable for over-65s.<\/p>\n

    When is the best time to get the flu vaccination?<\/h3>\n

    Ideally before the onset of each flu season. Staff vaccinations at Metro North Health are beginning in April.<\/p>\n

    There is a delay of 10 to 14 days after getting the jab before the vaccines become effective.<\/p>\n

    The best protection against influenza occurs in the first three to four months, but protection should generally last the whole season.<\/p>\n<\/div>

    <\/div>
    <\/div>
    <\/div>
    <\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    As we enter flu season, our experts highlight the risks of influenza, as well as the rewards of getting vaccinated in an informative vidcast.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":53,"featured_media":20867,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_searchwp_excluded":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[176],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20838","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-at-the-royal"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nReasons to get your free flu shot - Staff Extranet<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Reasons to get your free flu shot - Staff Extranet\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"As we enter flu season, our experts highlight the risks of influenza, as well as the rewards of getting vaccinated in an informative vidcast.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/metronorth.health.qld.gov.au\/extranet\/newsletters\/news-at-the-royal\/get-your-free-flu-shot\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Staff Extranet\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-05-22T03:24:11+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-05-23T21:55:07+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/metronorth.health.qld.gov.au\/extranet\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2024\/05\/rbwh-vaccine-fb.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"400\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"nealeian\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/metronorth.health.qld.gov.au\/extranet\/newsletters\/news-at-the-royal\/get-your-free-flu-shot\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/metronorth.health.qld.gov.au\/extranet\/newsletters\/news-at-the-royal\/get-your-free-flu-shot\",\"name\":\"Reasons to get your free flu shot - 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