On Monday, Extremadura began its most ambitious flu vaccination campaign in recent years. “For this purpose, we purchased 27,000 more doses of vaccine than last year,” details Yolanda Márquez, general manager of the Ministry of Public Health. The goal is to immunize more citizens this season and, therefore, vaccines are being offered to groups hitherto not included.
This includes children between 6 months and 5 years of age, smokers under 60 years of age, students practicing in the region’s health and social hygiene centres, teaching staff and people who come into direct contact with animals or their secretions. “The last group of people we are talking about include farmers, veterinarians, farm workers, hunters, conservationists… The goal is to reduce infections between human viruses and avian or pig viruses,” the general manager clarified. .Department of Public Health.
Regardless, the new groups join those that have traditionally made up the target group for flu and coronavirus vaccination campaigns. Because, like last year, the region is immunizing against both viruses at the same time, vaccinating those recommended at the same time. In fact, for all the target groups of the campaign that has just started: people over 60 years old who live in social care centers or have risk factors, minors over five years old who also have these conditions, pregnant women, people living with immunosuppressed people , health and social hygiene personnel and public service personnel such as firefighters, civil defense and security forces and institutions.
The Ministry of Health purchased a total of 340,100 doses of influenza vaccine, including 100 doses for people with egg allergies, to immunize these new groups of people. Likewise, it has the doses it needs for COVID-19 vaccinations through weekly shipments from the Ministry of Health. “To date, we have received 137,400 doses of vaccine, with approximately 200,000 more to arrive,” explained Yolanda Márquez. The goal is to expand on the percentage of immunity against both viruses achieved last year. According to data provided by the public health department, at the last event, the infection rate of new coronavirus was 60% and the infection rate of influenza was 65%. “Now we hope to get to 75% of both.”
How to get vaccinated
For this reason, the director of public health explained, “we decided to expand the population group so that immunization reaches more citizens and thus try to avoid the collapse of health centers and hospitals.” Saturation is usually reached when influenza and coronavirus infections peak , because in many cases they can worsen a preexisting condition.
The Ministry of Health encourages all target groups of the ongoing dual campaign to protect themselves. «Influenza vaccination is established, but people’s understanding of COVID-19 is not the same, and this has to change; “We have to understand that we have to respond to what is happening to us, the pandemic, so COVID-19 vaccination Vaccination.”
For this reason, Márquez insisted, “it is necessary for us to vaccinate against influenza and COVID-19.” The Director of Public Health clarified that to do this, “it is enough to ask for an appointment with the nurse of the health center to which each person belongs.” The campaign usually takes place in the mornings from Monday to Friday, “but there are also some health centers that do vaccinations in the afternoon, depending on staff and demand there.” The campaign starts this Monday and will run until January 31 , Marquez clarified for minors that “the influenza vaccine is compatible with the vaccine against respiratory syncytial virus that will be available to children under 6 months of age starting in November.”