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The HSE has warned that Ireland is facing a flu epidemic in the coming weeks.
Reported by The Mirror, incidences of the virus have double in the past week, rising from 25.8 per 100,000 people to 46.7 per 100,000.
Dublin is particularly affected by the outbreak.
Older people and those in residential and acute care homes are most at risk.
The HSE state:
“Flu can cause severe illness and can even be life threatening for older people, those who have a long term illness and pregnant women.”
They are urging those who can get the flu vaccination to do so and are reminding opopele that a new flu vaccine must be administered every year.
The HSE provides the flu and pneumococcal vaccine free of charge for all those in the at-risk groups.
Vaccination is strongly recommended for
- Persons aged 65 and older
- Those with a long term medical condition such as diabetes. heart, kidney, lung or neurological disease
- People whose immune system is impaired due to disease or treatment
- Persons with a Body Mass Index (BMI) over 40
- Pregnant women (at any stage in pregnancy)
- Residents of nursing homes and other long stay institutions
- People with regular close contact with poultry, water fowl or pigs
- Health care workers
- Carers
