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Seasonal flu vaccination and COVID Booster Vaccination

Last updated Monday 7 October 2024

This page will be updated regularly with details of our Flu Vaccination Campaign and Autumn/Winter COVID Booster Campaign

Introduction

Due to past COVID restrictions there were very low numbers of flu cases in the previous winters which means there will be less natural immunity in the community this winter now that we no longer have COVID restrictions.

Drive-thru Flu and COVID-19 Vaccination Clinics

Due to the overwhelming positive feedback on our previous clinics we plan to run drive-thru Flu Clinics again this year.

Patients will need to arrive in their car at the allocated time with easy access to their upper arm/shoulder (no coats or jumpers please).

Families/Households

As far as possible we have tried to identify families and households and invite everyone to the same appointment slot. If however, we have invited two people in your family to different time slots, you can of course all come together in one time slot, as long as you arrive in one vehicle as a family.

Arrival at Drive Thru Clinic

To help us run the clinic efficiently and conveniently for all patients, please follow these instructions:

Enter the Drive-Thru clinic from the Silverbirch Road
Exit via the Pinehill Road
There will be staff wearing Hi-Visibility Vests or Jackets to Marshal arriving vehicles
Patients arriving in Taxis should make themselves known and they will be prioritised to prevent waiting
Marshalling staff will direct you to one of four vaccination lanes
Enter the vaccination lane, stop, apply your parking brake and turn off your engine
Ensure you are not wearing any clothing that will prevent easy access to your upper arm/shoulder
Have your Flu (and COVID if applicable) vaccination consent forms completed and ready to hand to staff
Once you have received your vaccination you may drive on and exit
If you feel you need to sit for a while before leaving please let the staff member know and you will be directed to a waiting Bay

Please do you best to download, print and complete the Flu and COVID vaccination consent forms before arriving, but if you are genuinely unable to do so we will have forms available on the day. The more people who arrive with completed forms the more quickly the clinic will flow.

Schedule of clinics (updated as additional clinics added)

Last updated Monday 7 October 2024

Thursday 10 October
Saturday 12 October

We will also be offering opportunistic vaccinations to patients attending the practice at any time.

SMS Consent

This year we are aiming to vaccinate all eligible patients as early as possible. To allow us to contact you quickly and easily please sing up for our SMS Text Messaging Service.

Flu and COVID Consent and Data Collection Forms

To help the clinic run smoothly please print off and complete copies of the Flu and COVID consent forms and bring them with you to your vaccination appointment. If you are unable to do this don't worry. There are printed forms available at the Practice and they will be provided at the clinic.

About Flu

Seasonal flu is a highly infectious respiratory illness caused by an influenza virus. It spreads rapidly through the coughs and sneezes of infected people.

Seasonal flu immunisation, or the flu vaccination, is the administration of a vaccine against flu. It gives good protection from flu that lasts for one year.

The flu vaccine is offered to people in at-risk groups, who are at greater risk of developing serious complications from flu. To stay protected, they need to have it every year.

The vaccine, which is normally available in the autumn, is made from the strains of flu that are expected in the coming winter.

For more information on flu see Flu Aware NI

How the vaccine protects you

About a week to 10 days after you have had the flu injection, your body starts making antibodies to the virus in the vaccine.

Antibodies are proteins that recognise and fight off germs that have invaded your blood, such as viruses. They help protect you against any similar viruses you then come into contact with.

The flu virus changes every year, so you need to have a flu jab annually to make sure that you are protected against the latest strain of the virus

How effective is it?

The flu vaccines currently available give 70-80% protection against infection, with flu virus strains closely matching those in the vaccine.

In the elderly, protection against infection may be less, but immunisation reduces the chances of pneumonia, hospital admissions and death from seasonal flu. There is also now an adjuvanted vaccine available for the elderly which should offer greater protection that the standard vaccines used before.

For most people, seasonal flu is unpleasant but not serious and they recover within a week or two. Certain people, however, are at greater risk of developing serious complications of flu, such as bronchitis and pneumonia. These may require hospital treatment. A large number of elderly people die from flu every winter.

The seasonal flu vaccine is offered free of charge to these at-risk groups to protect them from catching flu and developing these complications

At-risk groups

It is recommended that people in the following groups have the seasonal flu vaccination:

aged 65 or over
pre-school children aged two years or more on the 1 September 2023 (D.O.B range 02/07/19 – 01/09/21). For children a nasal vaccine is available
chronic respiratory disease
chronic heart disease
chronic kidney disease
chronic liver disease
chronic neurological disease
diabetes
immuno-suppressed
household contacts of immunocompromised individuals
asplenia or dysfunction of the spleen
pregnant women
morbid obesity (BMI ≥ 40 kg/m²)
live in a residential or nursing home
those who are the main carer for an elderly or disabled person whose welfare may be at risk if you fall ill
health and social care professionals directly involved in patient care

If you are the parent of a child (over six months) with a long-term condition, speak to your GP about the flu jab. Your child's condition may get worse if they catch flu.

If you are the carer of an elderly or disabled person, make sure they have had their flu jab.