HCM City residents rush to get flu vaccine

HCM CITY — The number of people getting flu vaccines has risen in recent days following three deaths from swine flu (A/H1N1) in HCM City.

Dr Nguyễn Thị Cúc of the Vietnam Vaccination JSC (VNVC) in the city’s Phú Nhuận District, said that in the last few days around 1,000 people were getting the flu vaccine daily. Previously, the number of people ranged from 100-200 a day.

Parents who have taken their children for vaccines under the regular immunization schedules have also registered for flu vaccines for their kids.

Many people are getting the vaccines for all family members.

Children, pregnant women, the elderly, and people who are overweight or obese, or have chronic diseases such as diabetes and asthma are at high risk of serious flu complications, she added.

The city’s Preventive Medicine Centre reported a spike in the number of people getting flu vaccines.

The centre attributed the rise to fear about the recurrence of swine flu and the three reported deaths.

The number of children who receive vaccines increases in the summer as they are out of school, according to the centre.

At least 28 patients at Từ Dũ Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital and 15 patients at Chợ Rẫy Hospital have tested positive for swine flu. 

There are 30,000 cases of influenza in the southern region every year, according to the HCM City Pasteur Institute. —VNS