Vaccines best way to safeguard your family

RE: “Phenomenal” influenza season kills 10 people in Townsville.

With the spread of anti-vax pseudoscience on social media, influenza vaccine coverage in Australia is still insufficient.

In 2017, a total of 1268 children were hospitalised with influenza.

The vaccine effectiveness of inactivated quadrivalent influenza vaccine for preventing hospitalised influenza was estimated at 30.3 per cent.

Significant influenza-associated morbidity was observed in 2017 in Australia.

Most hospitalised children had no comorbid conditions.

Vaccine coverage and antiviral use was inadequate.

Put simply, if you and your children are vaccinated yearly against influenza, and if your child(ren) do catch influenza, they are 30 per cent or almost a third less likely to end up in hospital with severe symptoms, and if admitted, 86.5 per cent less likely to be admitted to intensive care.

This year, about 3000 people have been admitted to hospital with influenza, more than double the 2017 numbers, and we’ve still got three months to go.

In 2017 there were four inhospital deaths. In 2019 we’ve had almost 200 influenza deaths.

Elderly people’s immunity starts to slow down and wain; all the more reason for regular influenza vaccinations.

Vaccines are safe and effective. Vaccination is the best way to protect you and your family.

ROD COOK, Vaccine scientist, Condon.