UAE flu vaccine campaign aims to break 'cycle of infection'

People vulnerable to severe infections are the focus of the UAE's flu vaccine campaign, with the latest initiative marking 10 years of the nationwide health drive.

The Ministry of Health and Prevention on Thursday launched its annual awareness campaign on seasonal influenza, which this year runs under the banner "Protect Yourself Protect Your Community".

The campaign runs until March and health officials said flu virus cases in the UAE were at their highest during that period. The initiative aims to protect vulnerable groups include the elderly and healthcare workers, as well as children under the age of five and their families.

“We are increasingly focusing on vulnerable groups that can easily get the infection, where it can lead to severe complications and sometimes, God forbid, death,” said Dr Nada Al Marzooqi, director of the Public Health and Prevention Department at the Ministry of Health and Prevention.

“Usually, it’s the elderly, children under five years of age, pregnant ladies, those with the chronic diseases affected because of their low immunity, and that's why we would like to cover them, their caregivers and family with the vaccine. We aim to have more coverage in the community to break the cycle of infection.”

Demand for vaccine

While exact vaccination numbers are not available, officials praised the drop in severe cases requiring hospital care and an increase in the number of people coming forward to have the flu shot.

“The main impact we have seen is it has reduced the number of severe flu cases in hospitals and that was the aim of the seasonal flu awareness campaign,” Dr Al Marzooqi said. "High-risk groups can also see an impact on their health and well-being, less severe impact of the disease, less absenteeism from school or work.

“From last year we noticed people coming to us saying, ‘We need the vaccine. Has it come?’ Since the end of July and August, people are coming to ask for the vaccine.”

Officials reminded the public of other preventive measures including washing their hands regularly, covering their face when coughing or sneezing, using sanitisers and regularly cleaning surfaces in schools and offices.

Dr Ayesha Al Basti, head of family medicine at Dubai Health, said it was important for families to be vaccinated to curb the risk of further infection. “When a patient is infected, there is also a chance for it to spread to the family, so we need to play a role to prevent the disease spreading in the family,” she said.

Community impact

Dr Abdullah Al Rasasi, head of the Preventive Medicine Department of Dubai Health Authority, said the flu campaign was critical to protecting vulnerable groups. “We encourage everyone to take the vaccine – what is more important to us is the impact on the community,” he said.

While most people are able to recover from seasonal influenza without medical treatment, the illness can be more dangerous to certain groups. About one billion cases of seasonal influenza are recorded each year, including three million to five million that lead to severe illness, World Health Organisation data shows.

Influenza causes 290,000 to 650,000 respiratory deaths a year. Symptoms typically begin up to four days after an infection and can linger for a week.

Doctors recommend taking the flu vaccine every year as the most effective protection against infection. The shot is designed to provide immunity against the most common viruses and is updated annually to match the strains expected to circulate during that season.

The UAE campaign runs with the co-operation of the Abu Dhabi Public Health Centre, Department of Health in Abu Dhabi, Emirates Health Services, Dubai Health Authority, Dubai Health and Sharjah Health Authority.