Jessica Page: WA has the country's lowest flu vaccination rate putting the vulnerable at risk
There's something in the air — winter. And our hospitals are not ready for it. They're barely coping now.
Plenty of blame can be, and has been, shared around on that score.
And it's my turn to cop a bit.
And probably only fair that the Health Minister dish it out.
Rightly under pressure over yet another month of record ramping, Meredith Hammat insisted it is a nationwide issue and that the State Government is throwing everything at it.
She also said there is something everyone can do to help.
'The United States just experienced its worst flu season in 16 years and we've used that information to prepare for the additional demand this winter will likely bring to WA,' Ms Hammat said.
'Please, if you haven't done so already, get your free flu vaccination and protect yourself and your loved ones this winter'.
The Premier must have been listening.
Over the weekend, a photo of Roger Cook dutifully getting his jab at the local pharmacy was posted on his social media accounts with a timely reminder that the vaccine is only free in WA until the end of this month.
But it was another photo that brought me to tears and made me chastise myself for not yet booking my kids in for their jabs.
It was a photo of a two-year-old boy hooked up to a ventilator due to influenza.
His mother Hannah Elsey reported that he was previously healthy, with no medical conditions, but fell ill a couple of weeks before an appointment to get vaccinated.
'Luckily he survived and has made a full recovery, but I don't think I will ever fully recover from the trauma,' she said.
That social media post reached me all the way from Sudbury in the U.K. but it is relevant here and now, with warnings that a dire flu season in the United Kingdom and the United States is a harbinger of what is to come.
The UK Health Security Agency has reported Influenza-mortality for the 2024-25 winter of about 7,800, up 53 per cent on the previous year.
Most were people aged over 65, but the deaths of eight children aged four and under, were blamed on the flu.
It's already taking a toll in WA, as reported by vaccine advocate Catherine Hughes who knows what she's talking about — all too well.
'Today was hard,' she posted on Light for Riley, the Facebook page set up in her son's name.
'I met with a beautiful mum who, just a couple of weeks ago, unexpectedly lost her young daughter to influenza.
'Before winter even began. Her gorgeous girl is just… gone. Please, if you can protect your kids… do it!'
Too many have not.
WA's flu vaccination rates this year are the worst in the country.
Only 12.3 per cent of 0-4 year olds have been vaccinated, equal last with South Australia.
The Vics are the best of the States at 18.8 per cent. Surely we can't let them win two flags this year?
(Putting aside the territories, lest I admit the bureaucrats in the ACT have won anything.)
Even our seniors are lagging, with only 50 per cent of the over-65s vaccinated.
In a supposed cost of living crisis, surely anything that's free would generate a rush to line up longer than the fro yo queues that jam the footpath in Vic Park on a Friday night?
But it is easier said than done for two working parents to find the time.
Then when you do, one or both kids are already sick with something else and its back to waiting for a gap in the calendar.
Western Australia has a troubled history with the flu vaccine, in particular, that does warrant caution. But caution should not be mistaken for conspiracies.
Check the label, make sure you're being given the vaccine that's recommended for kids (VaxiGrip Tetra or FluQuadri) and ask your doctor if you have any questions.
I'm no doctor, so I'll leave the last word to someone who is better qualified: PCH Paediatric Infectious Diseases Specialist and Kids Institute researcher Chris Blyth.
'We know that vaccines are the most cost effective public health intervention that we have,' Dr Blyth said.
'We know that vaccines do save lives and we know the vaccines that are on the schedule have been demonstrated to be safe and effective.'
They're not a 100 per cent guarantee, but up to 70 per cent effective is better than naught.
'It's a moderately protective vaccine, but we know that flu can be a very severe disease and any level of protection certainly translates to people keeping out of hospital,' Dr Blyth said.
Hospital staff are counting on that.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Sydney Morning Herald
6 hours ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Mia Freedman's Mamamia and News Corp sued over cannabis ads
Mia Freedman's media company Mamamia and News Corp's magazine division are being sued by the therapeutic goods federal watchdog, accused of unlawfully advertising medicinal cannabis. The case, brought by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) in the Federal Court, alleges Mamamia and the News Corp Australia-owned publisher of Body + Soul magazine ran articles unlawfully promoting medicinal cannabis products from alternative-medicine website and dispensary Atlus in 2022 and 2023 following a marketing campaign. Mamamia and Body + Soul published articles promoting medicinal cannabis and Atlus, which included endorsements from medical professionals, who are banned from endorsing such products under the TGA's advertising code, the body said. The TGA referred to quotes from a nurse in Mamamia's article titled '[Name] takes CBD oil daily for her anxiety. Here's what she wants people to know', and a doctor in an article, '5 health conditions you didn't know medical cannabis could help with' published by Body + Soul. The latter also contained a link to the Atlus website, the TGA said. The Mamamia article was also allegedly written by a person whose mother worked for a company associated with Atlus and was also involved in creating the Atlus' marketing campaign. The article was also posted on Mamamia's Facebook page, which had 1.3 million followers as of June 23, 2025. AG Therapeutics, which operates online medical cannabis clinic Atlus is at the centre of the case. The company's sole director, Dr Shimal Jobanputra, was a respondent, and facilitated the preparation and approval of the advertising campaign, the TGA said. Jobanputra was previously listed as a general practitioner in a Sunshine Coast clinic. Atlus used euphemisms such as 'plant medicine' in widespread advertising online and on social media for medicinal cannabis, as well as promoting cannabis' use for serious health conditions, the TGA alleged. Both publications' articles also used terms such as 'medical marijuana', 'cannabinoids', 'plant-based therapies' and 'natural therapies' that 'target the endocannabinoid system'. 'Such claims, known as restricted or prohibited representations, are strictly regulated and generally forbidden in therapeutic goods advertising without explicit TGA approval,' a statement from the regulator said.
The Age
6 hours ago
- The Age
Mia Freedman's Mamamia and News Corp sued over cannabis ads
Mia Freedman's media company Mamamia and News Corp's magazine division are being sued by the therapeutic goods federal watchdog, accused of unlawfully advertising medicinal cannabis. The case, brought by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) in the Federal Court, alleges Mamamia and the News Corp Australia-owned publisher of Body + Soul magazine ran articles unlawfully promoting medicinal cannabis products from alternative-medicine website and dispensary Atlus in 2022 and 2023 following a marketing campaign. Mamamia and Body + Soul published articles promoting medicinal cannabis and Atlus, which included endorsements from medical professionals, who are banned from endorsing such products under the TGA's advertising code, the body said. The TGA referred to quotes from a nurse in Mamamia's article titled '[Name] takes CBD oil daily for her anxiety. Here's what she wants people to know', and a doctor in an article, '5 health conditions you didn't know medical cannabis could help with' published by Body + Soul. The latter also contained a link to the Atlus website, the TGA said. The Mamamia article was also allegedly written by a person whose mother worked for a company associated with Atlus and was also involved in creating the Atlus' marketing campaign. The article was also posted on Mamamia's Facebook page, which had 1.3 million followers as of June 23, 2025. AG Therapeutics, which operates online medical cannabis clinic Atlus is at the centre of the case. The company's sole director, Dr Shimal Jobanputra, was a respondent, and facilitated the preparation and approval of the advertising campaign, the TGA said. Jobanputra was previously listed as a general practitioner in a Sunshine Coast clinic. Atlus used euphemisms such as 'plant medicine' in widespread advertising online and on social media for medicinal cannabis, as well as promoting cannabis' use for serious health conditions, the TGA alleged. Both publications' articles also used terms such as 'medical marijuana', 'cannabinoids', 'plant-based therapies' and 'natural therapies' that 'target the endocannabinoid system'. 'Such claims, known as restricted or prohibited representations, are strictly regulated and generally forbidden in therapeutic goods advertising without explicit TGA approval,' a statement from the regulator said.
West Australian
2 days ago
- West Australian
Budget cash splash hopes to fix flammable cladding problems at Perth's biggest hospitals
Six years after the State Government said it would start replacing flammable cladding at some of Perth's major hospitals, the government has quietly allocated another $28 million for remediation works at Perth Children's Hospital. It's in addition to the $33.3m announced in the government's mid-year review to replace the dangerous cladding at the Fiona Stanley Hospital B block, which houses its main medical wards. Taxpayers were expected to foot a $41m bill to remove the cladding according to last year's budget figures, but that number is now expected to balloon even further. Non-compliant aluminium composite panel cladding has been under intense scrutiny since the Grenfell Tower blaze in London claimed the lives of 72 people in 2017. Figures in Thursday's State Budget reveal WA Health has not only budgeted another $33.3m to address the problem panels at FSH, but that the works on B block are expected to take until at least the 2028-29 financial year to fix — more than 10 years on from the London inferno. Budget papers also revealed the works already in progress at FSH are set to cost $15.6m, bringing the total cost at the main southern suburbs hospital to $48.9m. The health department will add the PCH remediation to its portfolio of cladding works to manage, after testing in 2023 confirmed the city's only paediatric hospital was also at risk. The latest Building and Energy report on remediation efforts revealed of the nine Department of Health buildings requiring remedial action, five had been completed. A State Government spokesman confirmed works were already underway at FSH, Queen Elizabeth II Medical Centre and Joondalup Health Campus. 'This is a program of works across multiple buildings in a 24/7 live hospital environment,' the spokesman said. 'Works must be staged and scheduled to avoid impact on patients and service delivery.' A government contract for the QEII works reveals the Cancer Centre, the Sarich Neuroscience Research Institute, and the Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital mental health unit are among the affected buildings.
