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In August 2014, Brisbane-based emergency department nurse Jess, 32, was treating a patient experiencing respiratory problems, when聽the patient coughed on her.

A few days later, Jess developed aches and pains throughout her body, accompanied by a fever, vomiting and general lethargy.聽Engulfed in a haze of pain, she visited her GP and was diagnosed with the flu.

鈥淚 went straight home, and passed out on the couch. I lost four days of my life in a blur of sickness. It was horrible,鈥� Jess said.

Having worked as a nurse for 10 years, Jess is well aware of the seriousness of influenza.聽鈥淚t鈥檚 a deadly virus, and I have personally witnessed a number of people die as a result of the flu,鈥� she said.

鈥淥ne myth is that only old people die from complications of the flu. I can tell you first-hand, that young, healthy people die from the flu as well. It鈥檚 a virus that attacks your body, and if it isn鈥檛 treated quickly, it can attack your heart muscles and render even the fittest person completely debilitated.鈥�

Sydney-based nurse and lifesaver Lewis, 24, concurs.

Sydney-based nurse Lewis.

鈥淚 hadn鈥檛 realised the seriousness of the flu until I began nursing last year 鈥� it just hadn鈥檛 dawned on me," Lewis said.

鈥淚 missed the free staff flu vaccination at the hospital and mistakenly thought my immune system was strong enough to ward off the flu.鈥�

What started as 鈥渏ust a tickle at the back of the throat鈥� quickly transformed into a few weeks of sickness during where Lewis was forced to take significant time off work.

For two months, Lewis experienced headaches and body aches, blocked sinuses and a heavy, chesty cough that kept him up at night, further compounding his fatigue.

Lewis,聽now聽an advocate for in-pharmacy vaccination, is planning to vaccinate against the flu this year, and he is encouraging his colleagues to do the same.

However, new research by the Pharmacy Guild of Australia (The Guild) has found that one in two Australian adults do not plan to vaccinate against flu this year¹ despite last year鈥檚 record flu season which saw more than 249,000 reported infections.^2听On average, around 3000 Australians die from the flu each year,^3听while approximately 18,000 Australians are hospitalised.

The research聽found that 43% of Australian adults don鈥檛 realise that annual flu vaccination is required for optimal protection against the potentially life-threatening virus^1听 and 77% of respondents were unaware that the flu virus can remain active when airborne for 45 minutes or more.^1,4

鈥淚 make sure I never miss my annual influenza shot,鈥� said Jess. 鈥淲hile vaccination cannot afford protection against every influenza virus, it is developed to protect against the major circulation strains each year, and is the best form of defence against the flu.鈥�

鈥淚t鈥檚 as simple as a trip to your local pharmacy. It takes all of three seconds, and if you鈥檙e lucky enough, they鈥檒l give you a lollipop afterwards!鈥�

Brisbane-based nurse Jess.

References

1. Pharmacy Guild of Australia 2018 Flu Vaccination Study. Conducted by YouGov Galaxy; commissioned by the Pharmacy Guild of Australia. February 2018.

2. Australian Government Department of Health. National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System. Number of notifications of all diseases received from State and Territory health authorities, 2017 Report. . [Accessed: March 2018].

3. Immunisation Coalition. Influenza treatment. Available at: [Accessed: March 2018].

4. Influenza Specialist Group. How Influenza (flu) is spread. Available at [Accessed: March 2018].

Top image credit: 漏stock.adobe.com/au/Rio Patuca Images. Images of Jess and Lewis supplied.