Protect yourself, your family by getting a vaccination
The AMA says an early surge in influenza cases and other respiratory illnesses risks placing strains on healthcare workers and overwhelming hospitals, and urges people to get vaccinated to protect themselves and their families.
An early winter surge in influenza is placing pressure on emergency departments and exposing healthcare workers, highlighting the importance of flu vaccinations.
AMA President Professor Steve Robson told ABC News Breakfast a lot of people had not had a flu vaccination, which was making a bad situation worse.
“We are seeing an early surge in the number of influenza cases and in places like Queensland the numbers are really high,” he said.
“We know it’s a high-risk time coming into winter with school holidays and a lot of people travelling. So, we have got to be very careful to make sure our health services can cope with demand at the moment.
“There is one bit of advice that I have got: If you can possibly have a flu shot vaccination and you have not, go and get one.”
Professor Robson said flu was really affecting younger Australians, who spread it to other members of their families. He said flu shots were free for children aged six months to five years and for older Australians and those with underlying health conditions.
“It (influenza) creates an enormous amount of demand through the emergency department. But it also means that hospital staff are more likely to catch it when there’s a lot of flu around,” Professor Robson said.
“It’s really important to ease the burden on our health system. There are still other health issues going on and the less that hospitals, healthcare facilities and your GP has to deal with flu, the more they are able to help you with other health problems.”
Professor Robson said if people had symptoms despite having a negative RATS it was safer to assume that they had COVID to protect themselves and others.
