NHS attempts to save £3 per flu jab have fuelled winter crisis as 'Japanese flu' spre

The flu saga goes on.


https://uk.yahoo.com/news/nhs-attemp...220000926.html

Re: NHS attempts to save £3 per flu jab have fuelled winter crisis as 'Japanese flu' spre

I don't know why they try to give it free, many of us would happily pay for it, when my husband couldn't get an appointment he popped next door to the surgery and the pharmacy chappy did it for a small fee.

NHS seems scared to ask for money it's madness.

I certainly think many of us would have paid that £3 extra to get a better cover.

Re: NHS attempts to save £3 per flu jab have fuelled winter crisis as 'Japanese flu' spre

I agree Julie I would be happy to pay and have done so in the past. It only cost £12 at Boots at the time.

I would probably spend that much in tissues/paracetamol/ pastilles to suck if I had flu.

Re: NHS attempts to save £3 per flu jab have fuelled winter crisis as 'Japanese flu' spre

I guess the trouble is that when they do spend and prepare for an epidemic as they did on tamiflu etc. they then get criticised when an epidemic doesn't materialise. So they can't really win can they? It's impossible to keep up with flu strains.

However, in a few years there will be better ways to keep us protected. Technology is developing fast.

Re: NHS attempts to save £3 per flu jab have fuelled winter crisis as 'Japanese flu' spre

Japanese Flu now is it?
Is that instead of the Ozzie Flu or as well as?

Is it a separate vaccine for each?
I can't keep up with all this!

Re: NHS attempts to save £3 per flu jab have fuelled winter crisis as 'Japanese flu' spre

There was a more expensive vaccine called quadrivalent Mups but most GP surgeries used trivalent because that was the stock they had bought. The first protects against four strains (2 regular flu and 2 nasty types like Aus flu) and the second against 3 (2 regular and 1 nasty). As I understand it the vaccines for children (nasal spray) are a type of quadrivalent. But as at the start of this year's flu season they hadn't decided to roll out quadrivalent for adults (injections) as they were still assessing the risk of pandemic vs risk of wasting millions.

The trouble is that world health organisations cannot agree on the best way forward. I think in the US they have stopped giving the nasal vaccination (which is given here to children) because it's been found to be ineffective. The manufacturers of the vaccines are ultimately in control.

Last time the NHS spent lots of money preparing for a pandemic this happened :

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-26954482

Re: NHS attempts to save £3 per flu jab have fuelled winter crisis as 'Japanese flu' spre

Thank you for the explanation Annie.
For heavens sake don't let Realist know they admitted the vaccine was inneffective!