Pregnant women urged to get flu jab in new campaign

Pregnant women are among the high risk groups who are being encouraged to come forward to get this season's flu jab. A mass multi-media campaign starts on Friday which emphasises the seriousness of flu and the illnesses it can cause. Last year 31 people died from the H1N1 strain. Twenty-nine of those had underlying health problems. Stockpiles of the new vaccine have already arrived and health professionals are encouraging people to make an appointment early. The over 65s, expectant mothers and people with existing medical conditions will be called to get their jab by their GP surgery in the next few weeks. Since the pandemic in 2009, the traditional flu vaccine now protects against the H1N1 or Swine Flu virus.