"Study shows nurses unwilling to have swine flu jab - concerns as not tested fully". What a load of rubbish!

The swine flu vaccine production and process is identical to any other season flu jab, it's just that they are making a lot more of it than normal! All this type of study does is illustrate the lack of understanding by (in this case - nurses) the population as a whole as to the mechanism by which modern vaccines induce immunity. The flu vaccine DOES NOT contain flu virus which can induce disease. The flu vaccine DOES NOT give you flu! The vaccine is manufactured either from viruses which have been inactivated chemically or physically or is manufactured from the surface proteins which cover the virus (like the envelope surrounding a letter). The vaccine is injected into the body which then stimulates the production of antibodies against the bits of the virus.

This may cause a short lived achy feeling - which is NOT flu. The body is then "primed" so that when the real virus enters the body, there are already antibodies available to kill off the virus and hence give long term protection. As the Swine Flu is a new version of the virus, we all need to have two doses of the swine flu vaccine to provide long term immunity.

Please don't fall for the sensationalist headlines that some newspapers love to use to frighten everyone. Swine flu, like any other flu, is going to be around for some years and (for once) I support the Government in its provision of two doses of swine flu vaccine for everyone. The vaccine will not be released until it has passed various checks and will be as safe as any other flu vaccine that we use. I am going to be discussing the swine flu vaccine a lot over the coming weeks as this will be the biggest vaccination programme ever attempted in the UK... I expect to be giving 20,000 doses this autumn, hence coordination and public information will be key.

If you have concerns or questions - please do feedback in the comments to these blogs.