{"id":269539,"date":"2025-11-07T20:30:25","date_gmt":"2025-11-07T20:30:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/269539\/"},"modified":"2025-11-07T20:30:25","modified_gmt":"2025-11-07T20:30:25","slug":"uk-braced-for-worst-flu-season-on-record-as-experts-warn-thousands-could-die-and-nhs-issues-flu-jab-sos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/269539\/","title":{"rendered":"UK braced for ‘worst flu season on record’ as experts warn THOUSANDS could die and NHS issues ‘flu jab SOS’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Britain must brace itself for ‘thousands’ of death and the worst flu<\/a> season on record, experts chillingly warned today.\u00a0<\/p>\n

NHS<\/a> England chief executive Sir Jim Mackey said there was ‘no doubt’ this winter will be one of the toughest the health service has ever faced, with hospitals at capacity and patients left to endure long waits.\u00a0<\/p>\n

UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) estimates also show that deaths from flu in England stood at 7,757 last winter compared to 3,555 the year before.<\/p>\n

Child deaths involving flu also rose from 34 to 53.<\/p>\n

Australia has just endured its worst flu season on record, with over 410,000 cases \u2014 which, experts say, is often seen as an accurate predictor of what the UK can expect.<\/p>\n

Japan is also currently battling a flu epidemic, which has led to widespread school closures and thousands of people being admitted to hospital.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In a fresh plea ahead of a predicted spike in cases,\u00a0England’s top nurse today issued a ‘flu jab SOS’, urging people to come forwards for a vaccine to protect against severe illness.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But it also comes just days before resident doctors in England are set to strike<\/a> for five consecutive days, pilling pressure on stretched NHS services.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"In <\/p>\n

In England, figures released by the UKHSA today show flu rates remain over three times higher than normal for this time of year, with the highest rates seen in children and young people<\/p>\n

Despite a last ditch attempt from Wes Streeting to avert the action, thousands of medics \u2014 previously known as junior doctors \u2014 will walk out from November 14 to November 19 amid a row over pay and conditions.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Sir Jim, who took up the role earlier this year, said<\/a>: ‘Since stepping into this role, the thought of a long, drawn-out flu season has kept me awake at night. And, unfortunately, it looks like that fear is becoming reality.’<\/p>\n

Following Australia’s worst flu season since records began in 2001, ‘all\u00a0the signs suggest the NHS will face similar challenges in the months ahead’, he added.\u00a0<\/p>\n

‘From December through to March, our hospitals will be at capacity.<\/p>\n

‘And while our teams should be focused on preparing for the peak of winter, many are also having to plan around strike action \u2014 adding even more pressure at a time when every pair of hands counts.’\u00a0<\/p>\n

Chief nursing officer at\u00a0St George’s, Epsom and St Helier Hospitals in London, Elaine Clancy, also said:\u00a0‘Last flu season was particularly nasty and we’re very concerned that this year could be even worse \u2014 we’re preparing for a spike of flu onto our wards.<\/p>\n

‘We see people dying every year from flu and sadly thousands more will likely this year.\u00a0<\/p>\n

‘I strongly recommend booking your jab now, as it takes up to 14 days to fully kick-in.’<\/p>\n

\"NHS <\/p>\n

NHS England chief executive Sir Jim Mackey (pictured) said there was ‘no doubt’ this winter will be one of the toughest the health service has ever faced, with hospitals at full capacity and patients left to endure long waits\u00a0<\/p>\n

Your browser does not support iframes.<\/p>\n

Global trends suggest Australia and Japan<\/a>\u00a0have both been hit hard because the key circulating strain \u2013 H3N2 \u2013 is particularly aggressive.<\/p>\n

Experts have warned it has a higher mutation rate, which lessens the impact of prior immunity either from infection or vaccination.<\/p>\n

Both countries have also had lower take-up of vaccinations than in previous years, with Australia recording some of the lowest figures since 2020.<\/p>\n

In England, figures released by the UKHSA today show flu rates remain over three times higher than normal for this time of year, with the highest rates seen in children and young people.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But health officials have warned the virus will start spreading to older groups in the coming weeks.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The rate of hospital admissions for flu in England stood at 3.8 per 100,000 people last week, up from 2.4 the previous week.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It is a level of admissions usually not reached until the start of December, the UKHSA said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Of influenza viruses subtyped, the majority were H3N2.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"It <\/p>\n

It comes just days before resident doctors plan to strike for five consecutive days amid a row over pay and conditions. Thousands of medics \u2014 previously known as junior doctors \u2014 will walk out from November 14 to November 19\u00a0<\/p>\n

In the UK, two of the worst winter flu seasons of the past decade have been seen in the last three years.<\/p>\n

This has been partly attributed to the bounce-back of the virus after Covid restrictions were lifted combined with immunity being low.<\/p>\n

Dr Jamie Lopez Bernal, a consultant epidemiologist at UKHSA, said: ‘Flu continues to increase among younger people despite the school half-term break.\u00a0<\/p>\n

‘We expect the holidays gave flu a “firebreak” and dampened the spread, but we do now expect to see further increases as people return to school and work.<\/p>\n

‘Anyone with flu or Covid symptoms \u2014 including high temperature, cough, and feeling tired or achy \u2014 should minimise contact with others, especially those who are vulnerable.\u00a0<\/p>\n

‘If you need to go out with symptoms, consider wearing a face covering, wash hands regularly and ensure indoor spaces are well ventilated.’<\/p>\n

Those eligible for flu jabs are now being urged to come forward to protect themselves and reduce the strain on health services.\u00a0<\/p>\n

NHS England today revealed that it was making 2.4 million vaccination slots available next week \u2014 enough to vaccinate the whole of Greater Manchester or Botswana.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Those <\/p>\n

Those eligible for flu jabs are now being urged to come forward to protect themselves and reduce the strain on health services\u00a0<\/p>\n

Duncan Burton, chief nursing officer for England, said: ‘With just weeks left to ensure best protection against the worst of the flu season, we are issuing an urgent SOS to the eligible people who have yet to get jabbed this year.<\/p>\n

‘It is vital that the public use the over 2.4 million available appointments we have running next week to stamp out this early wave of flu cases and help shield themselves ahead of winter \u2014 when viruses tend to circulate and the NHS faces increased pressure on its services.<\/p>\n

‘The vaccine is proven to be safe and help prevent those at risk from getting seriously ill and even hospitalised from flu.<\/p>\n

‘So please check your local pharmacy, book an appointment online or by calling 119, or speak to your GP practice today about your winter flu vaccine.’<\/p>\n

Public health minister, Ashley Dalton, also said: ‘Vaccination is the best form of defence against flu \u2014 particularly for the most vulnerable.<\/p>\n

‘With flu cases already triple what they were this time last year, I urge everyone eligible to take up one of the 2.4 million appointments available next week.’<\/p>\n

All eligible adults should aim to have received their flu vaccination by the end of November.<\/p>\n

Free vaccines are available for anyone aged 65 and over, under-65s in clinical risk groups, care home residents and carers, pregnant women, close contacts of those who are immunosuppressed and front-line health and social care workers, as well as children.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The jab is also available privately.<\/p>\n

Appointments and walk-in sessions are available in local pharmacies, GP practices and community clinic drop-in centres across the country.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Britain must brace itself for ‘thousands’ of death and the worst flu season on record, experts chillingly warned…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":269540,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[64,63,100,137,500,941,2022,156872],"class_list":{"0":"post-269539","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-healthcare","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-dailymail","11":"tag-health","12":"tag-healthcare","13":"tag-japan","14":"tag-london","15":"tag-wes-streeting"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269539","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=269539"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269539\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/269540"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=269539"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=269539"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=269539"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}