Kingston GPs snub swine flu vaccine (From Richmond and Twickenham Times)
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Seven out of 10 Kingston GPs snub swine flu vaccine
11:00am Friday 11th December 2009 in News
Seven out of 10 Kingston GPs snub swine flu vaccine
Seven out of 10 nurses and doctors in Kingston have not taken the vaccination for swine flu, NHS Kingston has reported.
NHS Kingston said the take-up rate for frontline healthcare staff was similar to the rest of London and said it was developing “strong communication briefings for staff”.
The news that only 30 per cent had received the vaccine follows a report last month by the Comet that some Kingston GPs were rejecting it on safety grounds.
Dr Jeremy Harris, chairman of the Kingston and Richmond Local Medical Committee, who described himself as a needle-phobic, said the vaccine had been rushed out.
But he urged patients in priority groups to receive the injection.
Nobody in Kingston has been died from swine flu so far - despite worst case scenarios predicting 155 people dying from the pandemic in Kingston, although one woman has recovered after a spell in intensive care at Kingston Hospital.
