Seasonal flu vaccines
We organise and supply the seasonal flu vaccine for staff. Those working at Addenbrooke’s are eligible for a free vaccine.
Play your part in exterminating flu this winter: Protect yourself and others by making sure you have your flu vaccination.
Please remember:
- The flu vaccine is still the best protection we have against an unpredictable virus which can cause serious illness and potentially death
- Wash your hands – you can reduce the spread of flu by regularly washing your hands. You can pass flu on without having any symptoms, so wash your hands regularly
- Stay away – if you have flu, please stay away from work until you are better. The virus is highly infectious and outbreaks can happen quickly
- If you work at Addenbrooke’s and have already had your flu vaccination somewhere else, such as at your GP Practice, please inform us or call 216767, so your vaccination can count towards the Trust’s NHS target
Vast research has been conducted on the effectiveness and usefulness of the influenza vaccination. “Annual vaccination against influenza (flu) is recommended for all staff working in the UK National Health Service (NHS) to help reduce the risk of contracting the virus and transmitting it to patients. Around 23% of healthcare workers may become infected with flu during a mild flu season and, of these, 28–59% will have subclinical illness. Healthcare workers therefore represent an important vector for transmission to patients. Importantly, in a cluster randomised controlled trial, flu vaccination of care home staff has been found to reduce mortality, morbidity and health service use among residents. However, vaccination uptake in England for the flu season (2013–2014) was only 54.8% for healthcare workers with direct patient contact. By NHS trust, the median was 53.5%”.
Shrikrishna, D., Williams, S., Restrick, L., & Hopkinson, N. S. (2015). Influenza vaccination for NHS staff: attitudes and uptake. BMJ open respiratory research, 2(1), e000079.
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