Swine flu vaccine distributed to immunise the general
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Just 1m of the 10m doses of the swine flu vaccine distributed to immunise the general public have so far been used, indicating slow progress in fighting the current pandemic.
David Salisbury, director of immunisation at the Department of Health, said yesterday he remained “hopeful” that more than 11m people judged at high risk would be vaccinated “well before Christmas”.
The low uptake appears to confirm opinion polls suggesting considerable scepticism about the benefits of vaccination, with the H1N1 flu virus less severe for most people than originally feared and an intense debate on the potential side- effects of vaccination.
The figures may stoke debate on the amount paid by the government for measures to counter the pandemic, including total orders of 90m doses of vaccine. Revised planning assumptions have cut the likely number of deaths caused by the virus to 1,000, from as high as 65,000 mooted in July . So far 242 have died across the UK, with infections only slightly higher this week at 46,000.
But Mr Salisbury said it was too early to draw conclusions, with many vaccines delivered only very recently to doctors.
Ian Dalton, national director of NHS flu resilience, who is co-ordinating the health service response to the pandemic, gave much higher estimates for take-up of the vaccine among the 2m frontline health and social care workers, although he said his information was anecdotal.
He said York hospital had vaccinated more than 1,000 staff and Guy’s & St Thomas’s in London had used 1,500doses.
Sir Liam Donaldson, chief medical officer, cautioned that the virus was a greater threat to children than normal seasonal flu and could mutate into a more serious form, for which the vaccine could provide -protection.
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