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The Government Influenza Vaccination Programme (GIVP) for 2006/07 will be extended until the end of February 2007 to allow more eligible people to be vaccinated.
A spokesman for the Department of Health (DH) said today (December 28) that the programme, which provided free vaccinations to eight target groups who are needy and high-risk, has been running smoothly.
"The department has ordered 390,000 doses of influenza vaccines for this year's GIVP, of which, about 220,000 have been administered to the target groups since the programme started on November 6, and 50,000 were released to the private medical sector late last month after a review of the vaccine supply to Hong Kong.
"We will continue to liaise with service providers to monitor the implementation of the programme," he said. "Eligible high-risk clients, who have not received this year's vaccination, are encouraged to get vaccinated early."
The programme was developed in accordance with the recommendations made by the Scientific Committee on Vaccine Preventable Diseases under the Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of DH. It covers the following target groups:
* Elderly people living in residential care homes;
* Long-stay residents of institutions for the disabled;
* Elderly people aged 65 or above with chronic illness attending follow-up appointments in public clinics, or receiving Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA);
* People aged under 65 with chronic illness who are on CSSA, and some in-patients of the Hospital Authority (HA) who have chronic illness;
* Health care workers of DH, HA and other government departments, as well as health care workers in elderly homes or institutions for the disabled;
* Poultry workers or staff who may be in contact with poultry in the poultry culling operations;
* Children aged from six to 23 months from families receiving CSSA; and
* All pregnant women receiving CSSA.
The spokesman said those who were not covered by the GIVP should consult their family doctors.
To prevent influenza and other respiratory tract infections, the public are advised to adopt a healthy lifestyle and adhere to the following health advice:
* Build up good body immunity by having a proper diet, regular exercise and adequate rest, reducing stress and avoiding smoking;
* Maintain good personal hygiene, and wash hands after sneezing, coughing and wear a mask when developing symptoms of respiratory infection;
* Maintain good ventilation; and
* Avoid visiting crowded places with poor ventilation, especially during peak flu season.
Ends/Thursday, December 28, 2006
Issued at HKT 17:09
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