Vaccination against influenza for the adult population from risk groups has begun in the Vitebsk region

October 7, Vitebsk / Olga Bogacheva - BELTA /. Vaccination against influenza for the adult population from risk groups has begun in the Vitebsk region, Vladimir Sinkevich, chief physician of the Vitebsk Regional Center for Hygiene, Epidemiology and Public Health, told a BELTA correspondent. Every fifth resident of the region will receive a free vaccination against the main winter ailment within a month. In total, the immunization campaign plans to cover about 289 thousand people, which is twice as many as last year. In addition, children under three years of age are planned to be vaccinated by the end of next week. As in previous years, people at high risk of influenza infection (healthcare workers, pharmacy workers, employees of round-the-clock care facilities, etc.) and of developing severe post-influenza complications (with various chronic diseases of the cardiovascular, respiratory and other systems, over 65 years of age, etc.) will be vaccinated free of charge. The most effective protection against influenza is vaccination, the chief physician recalled, emphasizing that the incidence rate among vaccinated residents of the region is 3.6 times lower compared to those who have not been vaccinated. For the current immunization campaign for residents of the Vitebsk region, 254,753 doses of vaccines have been purchased at the expense of the republican and local budgets. Enterprises in the region are also actively supporting this preventive measure, which, according to the latest data, plan to vaccinate more than 29,000 employees at their own expense. Anyone can get vaccinated on a paid basis. Currently, a slight seasonal increase in morbidity is observed in the region. Adenoviruses and RS viruses prevail. Influenza viruses have not been registered. Morbidity monitoring in the region is carried out daily, Vladimir Sinkevich added. -0-