Why getting your Covid-19 and flu jabs is crucial this winter – even if you’ve already been vaccinated

Rosie lives with ulcerative colitis and will benefit from a vaccine this winter (Rosie Turner)

“I’m always first in the queue for the flu vaccine,” says Rosie Turner, 29, a comedian living in London with her girlfriend. “Now I want to get my Covid booster. I’ve had all the other Covid vaccinations.”

Rosie lives with ulcerative colitis and is one of millions of people around the UK who will benefit from a vaccine this winter.

With Covid-19 and flu spreading more easily during the colder months, and protection provided by the coronavirus vaccines decreasing over time, it is important that those in at-risk groups come forward for their jab – even if they have had a previous vaccine against the viruses.

If Rosie caught flu or Covid and wasn’t vaccinated, she would be at an increased risk of becoming seriously ill.

“It could trigger a ‘flare-up,’ and symptoms such as diarrhoea, vomiting and bloating could all get amplified,” she explains.

“Given this, I’m first in the queue to get the flu vaccine every year, and now want to get my Covid booster. Getting vaccinated is essential for me.”

The same is true for Trevor Cruickshank, 45, a catering business owner from Haslemere in Surrey, who suffered a stroke in 2020.

“Because of my business I come into contact with a lot of people and it is important to protect yourself from everything,” he says.

“It is better to have the vaccination than end up in hospital or worse. There’s a lot of misinformation out there about vaccines but we have been using vaccines for hundreds of years and they have been saving lives.”

(Trevor Cruickshank)

Like Trevor, if you have certain long-term health conditions, you are at increased risk of hospitalisation from flu and Covid-19 this winter.

So it is important you get vaccinated ahead of winter to protect yourself.

Remember, if you’re in an eligible group and not yet had your first, second or booster dose – book an appointment online or find a walk-in centre.

Within 14 days of receiving your booster, your immunity against Covid-19 will be increased to about 90 per cent protection against serious illness.

If you’re 50 or over or in an at-risk group, the advice is to boost your immunity now with a Covid and flu vaccine.

Don’t delay, book your free flu vaccine and Covid-19 booster appointments now.

Who is eligible this season?

Those eligible for NHS influenza vaccination and Covid-19 boosters in 2022/23

Those aged 50 years and over and those aged five years to under 50 years (for Covid-19 booster) or six months to under 50 years (for influenza vaccine) in the following clinical risk groups:

• chronic (long-term) respiratory disease, such as asthma (requires continuous or repeated use of inhaled or systemic steroids or with previous exacerbations requiring hospital admission), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or bronchitis
• chronic heart disease, such as heart failure
• chronic kidney disease at stage 3, 4 or 5
• chronic liver disease
• chronic neurological disease, such as Parkinson’s disease or motor neurone disease
• learning disability
• diabetes
• asplenia or splenic dysfunction, such as coeliac syndrome.
• a weakened immune system due to disease (such as HIV/AIDS) or treatment (such as cancer treatment)
• morbidly obese (defined as BMI of 40 and above)
• severe mental illness, such as bipolar disorder or schizophrenia (eligible for Covid but not flu vaccine)
• pregnant women – at any stage in their pregnancy
• those in long-stay residential care homes
• carers
• close contacts of immunocompromised individuals
• frontline health and social care workers, who should be offered the flu vaccine through their employer. The NHS offers a complementary scheme for frontline social care workers that can’t get the vaccine through their employer.

Those eligible for Flu vaccination only are:

• children aged two to three years on 31 August 2022 (nasal spray)
• all children in primary school (nasal spray)
• some secondary school aged children later in the season (nasal spray)

Dr Susan Hopkins, Chief Medical Advisor at UKHSA, echoes the call for people in those eligible groups to get vaccinated.

“Flu and Covid-19 are unpredictable but there are strong indications we could be facing the threat of widely circulating flu, lower levels of natural immunity due to less exposure over the last two winters and an increase in Covid-19 circulating with lots of variants that can evade the immune response,” she says.

“This combination poses a serious risk to our health, particularly those in high-risk groups.

“The H3N2 flu strain can cause particularly severe illness. If you are elderly or vulnerable because of other conditions you are at greater risk, so getting the flu vaccine is a sensible, potentially life-saving thing to do.

“We are extremely fortunate to have vaccines against these two diseases. Most eligible groups have been selected because they are at higher risk of severe illness.”

Deputy Chief Medical Officer Dr Thomas Waite adds: “Vaccines have saved many lives over the years for both flu and more recently COVID-19. But we must not be complacent – infections will rise once again this winter, so it’s really important people get both their COVID-19 and flu vaccines if eligible.

“Vaccines are the best way to protect yourself from serious illness and will help reduce pressure on the healthcare system.”

Find out if you’re eligible at nhs.uk/wintervaccinations and book now.