Doha: A comprehensive national influenza vaccination campaign has been launched jointly by the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH), Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC) and Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC), to ensure that both the community and healthcare workers are vaccinated.
Being conducted for the fifth consecutive year, the campaign is being held under the theme ‘Fight the Flu’. The influenza vaccine has been made easily accessible to everyone to ensure vaccination of as many people as possible. About 200,000 people are expected to be covered under the national influenza vaccination campaign.
To ensure as many people as possible are vaccinated this year, members of the public will be able to obtain the influenza vaccine for free at PHCC Health Centers across the country, HMC (for patients attending clinic appointments), as well as selected private and semi-private clinics. Thousands of staff across the Qatar healthcare system have already received the vaccine in readiness for the season.
“The influenza season starts with the onset of winter months and people get affected especially in the colder months. This year, we had witnessed a major attack of influenza a bit early and the campaign aims to reach out to a good section of the public as early as possible,” said Dr Abdullatif Al Khal, HMC’s deputy chief medical officer and head of Infectious Diseases and co-chair of the National Pandemic Preparedness Committee speaking during the official launch of the Fight the Flu campaign.
“Flu is a serious disease that can lead to hospitalisation and sometimes, even death. Vaccination to prevent influenza is particularly important for people who are at high risk for the flu and its complications. This includes the elderly, young children, pregnant women and people with chronic medical conditions. It is also important for healthcare workers to vaccinate themselves against the flu to protect their patients. Even healthy people can get very sick from the flu and spread it to others – this is why it is important to take all measures to protect yourself and your family,” added Dr Al Khal.
The dedicated website – www.fighttheflu.qa – is again live where members of the community can find information about the vaccine – including myths and facts – as well as where they can get the vaccine for free in Qatar.
“This year we have ordered 200,000 doses of vaccine as last year’s campaign was highly successful. Based on our experience from last year we have planned for this year. If there is still demand for more, we are ready to bring more doses,” said Dr Hamad Al Romaihi, Manager, Health Protection and Communicable Diseases at MoPH.
The annual seasonal flu vaccine is the best and safest way to reduce the chances catching the flu and potentially spreading it to others. Every flu season is different, and influenza infection can affect people differently, but across the world millions of people get the flu every year, hundreds of thousands of people are hospitalized and tens of thousands of people die from flu-related causes every year.
Dr Soha Albayat, Head, Vaccination Section, MoPH highlighted the efforts to reach out to more people. “Last year we had ordered for more doses as there was high demand. We are trying to reach out to high-risk people. They include elderly people above the age of 65, young children below five, pregnant women and people with chronic medical conditions,” she said.
According to Dr Albayat, the annual seasonal flu vaccine is the best and safest way to reduce the chances of catching the flu and potentially spreading it to others. Every flu season is different, and influenza infection can affect people differently, but across the world millions of people get the flu every year, hundreds of thousands of people are hospitalised and tens of thousands of people die from flu-related causes every year.
“We encourage people to come early to get vaccinated to protect themselves and their loved ones from flu. The flu season is generally from October to April. In every country around 10 percent of the population is affected by flu. Last year we treated about 7,000 to 8,000 influenza cases,” she recalled.
Dr Albayat noted that special arrangements have been made for vaccination for the public, especially employees of ministries and other companies. “ If the ministries and companies want their employees to be vaccinated at their work site, we will be able to send trained healthcare staff to their place for vaccination. It is the most easy and accessible way for vaccination. Moreover, the side effects of flu vaccination are practically nil and the maximum can be some simple soreness where the vaccine is administered,” added Dr Albayat.
Thousands of staff across the Qatar healthcare system have already received the vaccine in readiness for the season.
Dr. Khalid Hamid Elawad, Health Protection Manager, preventive health directorate at PHCC said flu vaccination has been shown to reduce the risk of flu illness, and a growing body of research evidence supports the fact that vaccination also reduces the risk of serious flu outcomes that can result in hospitalization and even death.
“With the flu vaccination, it is also essential to practice good hygiene by properly and frequently washing hands and protecting others from coughs and sneezes — coughing or sneezing into a paper tissue or an elbow — to help prevent the spread of seasonal influenza. People who have flu-like symptoms should stay at home to avoid infecting others,” Dr Elawad said. “At PHCC we encourage all high risk patients to get the influenza vaccine during the winter season in any of our health centers as a preventative measure.”
For more information about influenza and where to get to the vaccine for free in Qatar, go to www.fighttheflu.qa.
