One in three cases of the flu affecting children
So far this year, 1 in 3 flu cases have been children, with Melbourne’s Royal Children's Hospital warning vaccination levels of kids under 15 are low. Dr Anthea Rhodes specialises in influenza in children. She says the rise in cases highlights the importance of getting the flu vaccine.
Category
📺
TVTranscript
00:00 14% of children under the age of five have been vaccinated so far this year against flu
00:07 and just 8% of older children. So the vast majority of kids across Australia are not
00:12 currently vaccinated. And there's a whole variety of factors behind that for families.
00:17 So some of those are just practical. They haven't yet got around to it, the logistics
00:21 of a busy family, getting it booked in, taking an hour or two out of the day. For some people,
00:27 they think about the cost, but important to remind parents that for children under five,
00:32 it is free to get the flu vaccine. We really want to reassure those parents, there's very
00:37 good evidence that the flu vaccine is the best way to reduce the child's chance of catching
00:42 the flu. And also in the in the event that they do prevent them getting really unwell.
00:47 So the main side effect that a child might experience or an adult, indeed, a bit of a
00:51 sore arm, a bit of tenderness, but aside from that, really, it should be a pretty minor
00:55 interruption for them. Flu is one of those viruses that does really target children and
01:00 in particular young children. It's still the leading cause of preventable hospitalisation
01:05 in children under five. And that's because they can get complications, they might get
01:08 trouble with the lungs, the heart, the brain or even very rarely death. So it is a serious
01:14 illness and can still affect healthy kids.
01:17 [BLANK_AUDIO]