South Australia's Chief Public Health Officer Professor Nicola Spurrier has issued a warning about how dangerous the flu can be for children, in a bid to encourage parents to get their little ones vaccinated.
"Working as a paediatrician, I’ve seen how dangerous the flu can be for little ones," Professor Spurrier said.
"Their tiny lungs can’t fight this serious infection and there’s a higher chance they’ll end up really sick in hospital."
She urged parents to give their children the "best possible defence against this serious disease" by getting them vaccinated.
The flu vaccine is free for children aged six months to five years, and for children aged five years and older with certain medical conditions. It can be accessed at your local GP or some council clinics.
Children aged under five are the most likely cohort to spread the flu and suffer complications from the illness.
There have been 576 cases of the flu so far this year in children aged between six months and five. Last year there were 1556 cases for this age group. Just 33 per cent and 38 per cent of children in this age group received the vaccine in 2021 and 2022 respectively.
There have been almost 3970 cases of the flu reported in South Australia this year in total, with 413 people requiring hospital admission and one death.
SA Health has launched a new campaign - Stop the flu - vaccination for children 6 months to under 5 years - to further encourage the take up of the vaccine for this key age group.
It includes the key message, 'Stop the flu before it stops your kids' which will be promoted on ads in social media, radio, specialist publications targeting parents, GP and pharmacy screens, and in shopping centres.
The campaign will run until the end of the month.
Through the National Immunisation Program, the flu vaccine is free for the following groups:
- all children 6 months to less than 5 years
- all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people 6 months and over
- people aged 65 years and over
- pregnant women
- people with certain medical risk factors (aged 6 months and over).
Adults and children who are experiencing homelessness are eligible to receive a free flu vaccine under the state-funded program.
Immunity against the flu wanes with time and the circulating strains may change, which is why it is essential that people get vaccinated against the flu each year.
South Australia currently has the highest mainland state vaccination rate at 30 per cent of the total population.
For more information, visit the SA Health website www.sahealth.sa.gov.au/flu
