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GHA poised for Covid booster and flu jab winter campaign

St Bernard's Hospital. Photo by Eyleen Gomez.

The Gibraltar Health Authority will soon be rolling out Covid-19 booster jabs and flu vaccines in a bid to prepare for the winter.

The roll-out comes after the GHA saw circulation of the flu, Covid and Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) on the Rock last winter.

Dr Helen Carter, the Director of Public Health, said: “We've got the seasonal flu vaccines in country, we're just waiting for the Covid ones to be delivered from the UK, which is imminent, hopefully in the next week or so”

“Our plan is that as soon as we've got the Covid vaccines in country, we'll be offering a booster, particularly to get us through that winter period.”

“Then we'll be doing an announcement about how people can come in and attend the Primary Care Centre.”

“We're going to be co-administering our seasonal flu and Covid booster campaign.”

“Whether people want to have them together or separately, that’s absolutely fine.”

“There's no harmful effects of having one in one arm and one in the other arm,” she added.

“This is the best way that the population can protect themselves going into the winter.”

The groups able to receive the vaccine will be the same as previous years.

“It'll be anybody over the age of 50, anybody with a long-term health condition, anybody who has significant contact with somebody with a long-term health condition, anybody in a residential care facility like ERS, and any health or social care workers,” Dr Carter said.

“So, I'd encourage people that when we announce that we are offering the flu and Covid vaccines, that they take up that offer.”

Although the Rock has seen the back of the worst of Covid, Dr Carter said having experienced a wave of the virus this summer, waves will continue over “the next couple of years”.

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