Get Flu Vaccinations for Employees Now!

Employers Urged to Get Flu Vaccinations for Employees Under Way Now!

Employers should have their staff vaccinated against seasonal flu in the next few weeks, in case of an early resurgence of swine flu, according to Brian Blackman, chief executive of one of the country’s leading injury management and wellness companies.

Pandemic swine flu -- the H1N1 influenza which spread to New Zealand immediately after it broke out in Mexico and United States last year -- has been included in the 2010 seasonal influenza vaccine.

“Senior health advisers have told us to get as many of our employer clients to take on a flu jab vaccination programme as possible,” Mr Blackman said. “New Zealand needs a year of strong productivity as we recover from the recession, and employers just can’t afford to have staff away during the winter.

“When a person is absent due to flu, not only is that person effected but his or her co-workers also then wonder if they are going down with the flu, and that affects their productivity. Teamwork is affected straight away too, and morale drops. Employers need robust workplaces where healthy people all contribute to the success of the company.”

Mr Blackman is CEO of Wellnz Ltd, a major injury management operator in New Zealand, which handles over 85,000 employees through its 42 client companies.

“Absenteeism generally is an ongoing problem for employers,” he said. “Swine flu and seasonal flu’s are just part of the overall picture but they can grab the headlines.”

Mr Blackman said that modern employers were now recognising that their people were their greatest asset, and organising healthy living programmes for staff which include diet, exercise, regular health checks and health monitoring, wellness advice, and vaccination protection.

“By investing in their staff, and delivering these programmes, the workplace becomes happier, healthier and morale improves which is reflected in productivity, and much improved work atmosphere. Staff actually enjoy going to work,” Mr Blackman said.

Public health director Dr Mark Jacobs has warned people need to be immunised as soon as possible because it took up to two weeks to develop immunity after vaccination, but swine flu may return to New Zealand in a "second wave" as early as April.

Dr Jacobs says people should not become complacent.

"Although current trends indicate that for most people swine flu is similar to normal winter seasonal flu for some it can be very serious and can lead to complications, even death. We need to be vigilant and take reasonable precautions."

Dr Jacobs says influenza can be a serious illness and is more than a 'bad cold". He says anyone can catch it, even the fit and healthy and sufferers can end up in hospital or can die as the disease can make other conditions, such as breathing or heart problems, even worse.

People are being asked to stay at home if they are unwell and to cover their mouths if they cough or sneeze.

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) said the H1N1 swine flu virus would probably spread at low levels during 2010's northern spring and summer, and be the dominant and threatening strain in the winter flu season.

"It seems unlikely that there will be another spring/summer pandemic wave in Europe unless there are significant unrecognised uninfected populations or the virus changes and becomes more transmissible," the ECDC, which monitors disease in the European Union, said in its latest flu risk assessment.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) declared last June that H1N1 was causing a pandemic -- the first influenza pandemic in 40 years -- after it was discovered in Mexico and the United States and spread around the world within six weeks.

So far the WHO has confirmed 16,226 deaths from the H1N1 pandemic virus, but the real death toll -- which will take at least a year to ascertain -- will be far higher, as most victims will have never been diagnosed or tested.

The WHO says more than 300 million people have been vaccinated against pandemic flu, and the immunisations, which have an excellent safety record, are 70-75 percent effective.

ENDS

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