Winter is a time when illnesses, particularly colds and flu, are much more prevalent. These can often make other conditions worse and as a result have a very negative impact on people’s health. This can of course also mean that health facilities become stretched during the winter and sickness form work isn’t good for the economy either.
Some people are more susceptible to catching Flu and usually the impact on those with less resistance is often more severe and sometimes very dangerous. This is why the NHS and West Sussex County Council have run a campaign through the autumn urging those at risk to have a flu jab to protect against this year’s flu virus.
Free vaccination is offered to people aged 65 or over, children aged 2 to 4 as well as children with weakened immune systems, pregnant women, adults and children with underlying health conditions (especially heart and respiratory disease) and carers who come into contact with at risk people. It is being offered at GP surgeries and at Pharmacies and I would urge anyone who at risk to have it done if you haven’t already. Each year the flu virus mutates so a new vaccination is needed for each winter flu season.
Whenever we get a very cold spell of weather in England and a period of snow, which actually isn’t very often, we don’t tend to adjust that well as a country, precisely because of the infrequency of severe winter weather in our temperate climate. This is in contrast to continental Europe where this is much more common or indeed Scandinavia or Canada where it is guaranteed. This inevitably means that the NHS comes under pressure when we get our coldest spell of the winter.
With an ageing society and more people using the health service than ever before, the NHS will be under more pressure this winter. Despite this, the NHS is performing well with more than 10,000 additional doctors and almost 10,600 more nurses on hospital wards since 2010. NHS funding has increased by £6 billion a year since 2010 and continues to grow.
Councillor Duncan Crow, Leader of Crawley Borough Council Conservative Group
14th December 2016