People who are at high risk of the flu – including senior citizens and children – are being advised to go private for their vaccinations this season, after the NHS indicated that there were shortages across many parts of the UK.
The adjuvanted trivalent vaccine (aTIV) vaccine for the over-65s is one of the key vaccinations which might be hard to come by this autumn, therefore people in this age group, in particular, could benefit from seeking help outside of the NHS.
While the NHS denies a shortage of the vaccine, many patients have complained of long delays in getting the vaccine ahead of the major influenza season.
Shortages of the life-saving vaccine within the UK are not uncommon, while in 2017 Public Health England (PHE) admitted that vaccines given to millions of patients had little effect against active flu strains – with an effectiveness of 10.1 per cent against common strains for those patients over the age of 65 and none at all against some key strains.
This resulted in 15,000 deaths from the virus last year – one of the highest numbers of flu-related deaths in the last decade.
The NHS claims to have reviewed its approach and changed the types of vaccinations on offer this year, but unfortunately around 40 per cent of stocks of the boosted vaccine may not reach GP practices until the end of November, with some less at-risk groups not receiving a jab until the end of December, according to PHE documents.
For many vulnerable patients, risking waiting this long before being vaccinated could have life-threatening consequences.
With this in mind, it would be wise for patients to seek inexpensive private vaccinations elsewhere before the winter begins to set in.
At The Harrow Healthcare Centre, we can provide flu vaccinations at a reasonable cost on a private basis. To find out more, please click here.
