IRELAND has one of the
highest uptakes of the flu vaccination among
Europeans over the age of 65, new statistics show.
Almost 58 per cent of Irish people in this age
category have received the 'flu jab', placing us
fourth highest on the league table.
The UK was ranked highest at just over 72 percent,
followed by The Netherlands (64 per cent) and
Portugal (61 per cent).
The figures, released yesterday by Eurostat, show
that the lowest uptake of flu vaccination was in
Estonia (5 per cent) followed by Latvia (7 per cent)
and Slovenia (12 per cent).
The European average rate was just over 44 per cent
in 2017, the latest year for which data is
available.
Ranking mid-table were countries including Italy (52
per cent); France (50 per cent) and Denmark (41 per
cent). Some 35 per cent of Germans aged 65 and over,
received the vaccination.
Meanwhile, the HSE’s influenza surveillance report
shows that there have been no reports of flu deaths
in Ireland so far this season, which began in
October and runs until May.
However, some 186 confirmed cases of hospitalisation
were notified.
Nine patients with confirmed influenza were admitted
to critical care units since the start of the flu
season. |
