Trust chief prompts elderly to get flu jab

A HEALTH chief is leading by example in the campaign to persuade elderly people to receive a flu jab.

Stephen Eames, chief executive of the Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Trust which runs Leighton Hospital in Crewe, rolled up his sleeve for the vaccination in support of a national campaign to remind pensioners and 'at risk' groups to be inoculated before winter sets in.

He said: 'Last year a high number of patients were admitted to Leighton Hospital as a result of flu-related illnesses. Patients with chronic illnesses such as asthma or diabetes, or 65 years or older, are particularly at risk.

'I would like to encourage everyone in these groups to contact their GP about booking their free flu jab. If you suffer from a serious illness or are elderly and you catch flu, it is more likely to lead on to a more serious illness.

'A flu jab provides the most effective form of protection against the virus.'

Everyone over 65 is being offered a vaccine, along with people suffering from various conditions like chronic heart or chest complaints including asthma, kidney disease and diabetes, people whose immune system is weakened by disease or medical treat-ment and people in residential and nursing homes.

Patients who received a flu jab last year will need to be vaccinated again.

Infectious bug warning

A HIGHLY infectious bug could strike thousands in Cheshire if people aren't vigilant, health officials have warned.

Doctors have urged anyone who comes down with the virus, which causes vomiting and diarrhoea, to stay away from work or school as it can be easily passed on.

Most attacks of what is colloquially referred to as 'winter vomiting' are caused by the Norovirus, which infects between 600,000 and a million people in the UK each year.

While it is extremely unpleasant, doctors say it is generally a short lived infection from which people recover without treatment.

But is very contagious and in addition to staying away from work or school, people with the bug are asked to refrain from paying visits to friends or relatives in hospitals or homes.