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Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/8...-out-of-flu-vaccine-after-surge-in-cases.html
GP surgeries running out of flu vaccine after surge in cases
GP surgeries are running out of the seasonal flu vaccine after a surge in cases, with manufacturers warning they have no supplies left.
By Rebecca Smith and Stephen Adams 10:20PM GMT 05 Jan 2011
In one of the worst flu outbreaks in recent years, surgeries in Oxfordshire, Kent, Derbyshire, Hertfordshire and Gloucestershire have all reported vaccine shortages.
Dr Peter Holden, a GP in Matlock, said: "In Derbyshire ? with just over one million people in total ? we have 1,300 doses left.
"I suspect this is not a different story from elsewhere in the country. I have been talking to colleagues this afternoon and I think the bottom line is this: there's enough vaccine for pregnant women who need it, and that's it."
Another doctor said yesterday that her surgery in Dulwich, south London, had run out of doses as those who were eligible for the jab on the NHS finally came forward because of fears that the virus was spreading.
Dr Rosemary Leonard said her waiting list was "growing by the hour" and she called on supermarkets and pharmacies to hand over their stocks to the health service so that at-risk groups could benefit.
Margaret Hickmott-Stapely, the manager of The Westerham Practice in Westerham, Kent, said doctors were having to ration doses to the most vulnerable as supplies were running low.
She said: "We are having to prioritise who gets it as we have only got a very small supply remaining. I've tried three manufacturers and I've not been able to get any."
In some areas hit by the shortages, GP practices with surplus stocks have had to donate their supplies to those without until new batches arrive from wholesalers or elsewhere. Vaccine manufacturers warned last night that they had run out and could make no more...
GP surgeries running out of flu vaccine after surge in cases
GP surgeries are running out of the seasonal flu vaccine after a surge in cases, with manufacturers warning they have no supplies left.
By Rebecca Smith and Stephen Adams 10:20PM GMT 05 Jan 2011
In one of the worst flu outbreaks in recent years, surgeries in Oxfordshire, Kent, Derbyshire, Hertfordshire and Gloucestershire have all reported vaccine shortages.
Dr Peter Holden, a GP in Matlock, said: "In Derbyshire ? with just over one million people in total ? we have 1,300 doses left.
"I suspect this is not a different story from elsewhere in the country. I have been talking to colleagues this afternoon and I think the bottom line is this: there's enough vaccine for pregnant women who need it, and that's it."
Another doctor said yesterday that her surgery in Dulwich, south London, had run out of doses as those who were eligible for the jab on the NHS finally came forward because of fears that the virus was spreading.
Dr Rosemary Leonard said her waiting list was "growing by the hour" and she called on supermarkets and pharmacies to hand over their stocks to the health service so that at-risk groups could benefit.
Margaret Hickmott-Stapely, the manager of The Westerham Practice in Westerham, Kent, said doctors were having to ration doses to the most vulnerable as supplies were running low.
She said: "We are having to prioritise who gets it as we have only got a very small supply remaining. I've tried three manufacturers and I've not been able to get any."
In some areas hit by the shortages, GP practices with surplus stocks have had to donate their supplies to those without until new batches arrive from wholesalers or elsewhere. Vaccine manufacturers warned last night that they had run out and could make no more...