As flu season approaches, Miller Road Pharmacy and Wesham Pharmacy – both based in Preston and part of the Imaan Healthcare chain – are advocating for the importance of getting jabbed at a community pharmacy.

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Many people visit their GP to receive their flu vaccination, which can lead to other vital services becoming quickly inundated.

Long queues and busy phone lines lead to stress on all sides as healthcare workers are pushed to their limits and patients are inconvenienced.

To stop this pressure on GPs, patients can receive their flu jab at their local community pharmacy.

Read more: Still waiting for your Covid jab? Here’s where and when you can get one in Preston and Lancashire during September

By spreading vaccinations across these services, more people can be vaccinated while reducing the overall strain on healthcare workers.

Additionally, more vaccinated people means greater immunity and fewer people requiring treatment from busy NHS services.

Earlier in the year, reports of flu cases in the UK were low. This is no doubt due to the restrictions in place surrounding the Covid-19 pandemic and potentially flu being masked by other respiratory viruses.

Yet these reduced levels of influenza will likely correlate to lower population immunity.

As it is expected that Covid-19 will co-circulate with the flu, this reduced immunity will make this flu season extra dangerous for those who are unvaccinated.

Contracting both flu and Covid-19 simultaneously compounds symptoms, and getting vaccinated against both is crucial to avoid a nasty double threat this flu season.

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Will you be getting your flu jab? Let us know in the comments below.