Griffith has been hit hard this flu season, with official figures indicating the area has seen a strong increase in flu sufferers this year.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Figures from the Murrumbidgee Local Health District (MLHD) indicate Griffith has seen 637 confirmed cases of influenza from the beginning of the year until October 20, a stark rise of 612 cases compared to this time last year.
Leeton has also seen a significant increase in cases this year, with 263 confirmed cases so far, while figures from the NSW Health Department indicated the MLHD area saw 4,888 confirmed cases of influenza from the beginning of the year until October 20.
On confirmed cases alone, the region has been in the top two areas of the state for the past two weeks, with 120 cases for the week ending October 6 and 76 cases for the week ending October 13.
Pharmacist at Pat Zirilli Amcal Chemist Leanne Foley said the pharmacy saw a significant increase in people coming in during the flu season.
"We did see a high influence of flu," Ms Foley said.
"It still did peak towards August and September, [but] there was a little early spark in April/May.
"That theory of not getting it too early, maybe that doesn't work anymore."
The administration of immunisations was one of the key increases seen by the pharmacy, with the pharmacy administering about 350 people during the flu season.
Ms Foley said the demand for immunisations was greater than expected and the increase in demand stemmed from an increased awareness of the symptoms of flu by the general public.
"We certainly had more people being immunised and we're predicting more will come next year," Ms Foley said.
"We did run out of vaccines and could not get any more towards the end of the season.
"We got a lot of people who will not normally think of getting the vaccine."
READ MORE
While this year's flu season may be on its way out, Ms Foley said flu is something to be constantly aware of.
"The Murrumbidgee Primary Health Network had a great ad campaign so from that ad campaign, I think it drew in a lot of the general population to be more aware of immunisation," Ms Foley said.
"The flu can circulate all the time, so it's never too late to get one."
***
While you're with us, did you know that you can now receive updates straight to your inbox every Monday at 6am from The Area News? To make sure you're up to date with all the Griffith and MIA news you can sign up here.
