Galway councillor urges HSE to prioritise flu jab over Covid vaccine
The HSE has been urged to prioritise the flu jab over the Covid-19 vaccine next winter.
Galway City Councillor Shane Forde (FG) suggested there were negative connotations associated with the Covid jab.
“We should prioritise flu jabs. The Covid vaccine to some people is a toxic word to use,” he said.
Councillor Forde was speaking at the HSE West and North West Regional Health Forum, where he asked if there was a plan to phase out the Covid vaccine to concentrate on flu jabs.
He asked the HSE to look at administering flu jabs to people in community settings such as at men’s and women’s sheds.
Dr Áine McNamara HSE Regional Director of Public Health West and North West said certain cohorts of people should get free Covic-19 vaccines twice a year.
These include people aged 80 or over, people in long-term care facilities, and people with weak immune systems.
Pregnant women and healthcare workers are also advised to get the Covid vaccine.
Tony Canavan, Regional Executive Officer HSE West and North West, said things change every year but the best advice was for people to stay informed about HSE public health campaigns regarding vaccines.
He said the HSE would make decisions on vaccines using the “best available clinical advice” at the time.
GPs in Galway administered 669 Covid vaccines to patients in the first five months of this year, a reduction of 220 compared with the same period last year.