Swine flu outbreak closes council offices as jab nears

Published on Wednesday 21 October 2009 09:47

HEALTH chiefs have said they are confident those most vulnerable to swine flu will be vaccinated by Christmas.

The news comes in the wake of another H1N1-related death in Scotland, the 16th since the start of the outbreak.

And there was a further warning today of the potential impact of mass sickness on day-to-day life, as two council offices in West Lothian were forced to close.

This follows schools in Linlithgow and Edinburgh having to struggle with high numbers of pupils off sick.

The swine flu immunisation programme got under way today, with the government urging all priority groups to take up the offer of vaccination when contacted by their GP.

The priority groups are frontline health workers, pregnant women, those with respiratory problems such as asthma, and anyone else in the "at risk" category for seasonal flu.

To help speed up the vaccination process, retired nurses have been contacted to ask if they would consider helping out in an emergency, and medical students may be temporarily promoted to administer injections if GPs start to struggle.

The latest swine flu death was yesterday revealed to be a 59-year-old woman from Fife, who had had "significant" underlying health conditions.

At the request of her family, no further details were being released, the Scottish Government said.

Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon said: "I'm deeply saddened to hear of this death and my thoughts are with her family and friends.

"In the vast majority of H1N1 cases, most people have fairly mild symptoms, but if you are at greater risk I urge you to take up the vaccine when invited to do so by your GP.

"We are confident those in the priority groups will be vaccinated by Christmas."

Meanwhile, West Lothian Council said sickness was causing disruptions to the Council Information Service (CIS) offices in West Calder and Fauldhouse.

There are planned closures for the Fauldhouse CIS office on Thursday and Friday, with no cash service in West Calder on Thursday. No staffing problems are foreseen for next week.

The council said some of the absences were down to workers calling in suffering from flu symptoms and possible swine flu, while other absences were down to holidays during school half-term.

The council had previously stated it was preparing for a possible swine flu outbreak by organising extra staff in emergency situations.