In the first months of the 2023-2024 influenza and coronavirus vaccination campaign, 76 people have been vaccinated, said Eva Martínez, Director of the Department of Public Health, Consumption and Care of the Ministry of Health and Social Policy got the vaccine. 0.25% of La Rioja’s population aged over 80 “thus achieving one of the goals of the joint vaccination campaign that started last October among the most vulnerable groups”.
As he explained, while “flu vaccination rates are higher than COVID vaccination rates,” this may be due to “so-called ‘pandemic fatigue.’ People have already received many COVID vaccines and the peak flu season is already here this year.” Becoming more powerful, this has been able to influence the population”.
Specifically, Martinez said that a total of 16,181 people over the age of 80 have received the COVID-19 vaccine (73.08% of the population in this age group), while in the same group, 17,585 people, or 79.42% of the population living in this age group, have received the influenza vaccine. population of this age group in La Rioja.
On the other hand, vaccination coverage in the 70-79 age group is close to 70%. Specifically, a total of 18,031 people in this age group have received the COVID-19 vaccine, accounting for 62.66% of the population; 21,212 people between the ages of 70 and 79 have received the influenza vaccine, accounting for 73.71% of the population.
Additionally, in the 60 to 69 age group, 45% of the population has been vaccinated. A total of 16,138 people have been vaccinated against COVID-19, accounting for 40.50% of the total population; 19,984 people aged 60-69 have been vaccinated against influenza, accounting for 50.15% of the population in this age group.
The Director of Public Health stressed that “despite the decrease in the percentage of vaccine doses compared to recent years, in La Rioja we still have higher vaccination numbers than in the pre-pandemic season.”
Martinez believes that “vaccines continue to save millions of lives every year, and in the case of influenza, they continue to reduce the severity of the disease and the complications that result.”
minor
In addition, experts want recognition of the effectiveness of bronchiolitis immunization in young children. This is an antibody, and immunity is immediate and lasts for six months. Specifically, the campaign is targeted at children born since April 1, 2023, and will run until March 31, 2024.
“This is a very positive response to immunization, with a vaccination rate of 95%. The advantage is that the effect is seen in reducing hospital admissions in the youngest children.”
It is worth mentioning that this year, children aged 6 to 59 months have also been systematically vaccinated. In previous seasons, only children belonging to high-risk groups were vaccinated, but this season, all children in that age group will be vaccinated.
In fact, there are different vaccines suitable for different age groups. For example, there is an intranasal vaccine for children aged 23 to 59 months, making it easier for children and their parents to receive the vaccine.
In the first four months of the influenza vaccination campaign, the immunization rate for this age group reached 42.29%, or a total of 4,813 minors.
Furthermore, this year, families have the opportunity to vaccinate their sons and daughters without an appointment, thanks to special events organized by the General Directorate of Public Health at CIBIR on January 13, 20 and 27. This initiative facilitates access to vaccination programmes.