The Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) will launch the National Seasonal Flu Awareness Campaign at a press conference to be held next week.
Themed "Protect yourself...Protect your community", the annual seasonal flu campaign will kick off on 26th September; in cooperation with Abu Dhabi Centre for Public Health and Dubai Health Authority (DHA) and Department of Health- Abu Dhabi.
The seasonal flu campaign, which comes in line with the UAE’s strategy to provide comprehensive health coverage and protect members of society against infectious diseases, will run until next December.
The campaign aims to enhance community awareness on the importance of having a seasonal flu vaccine, increasing health workers’ awareness and training them on best international practices to prevent the complications of influenza virus, providing flu vaccines and increasing vaccine coverage rates. It will focus more on the most vulnerable groups to influenza complications, including the elderly, pregnant women and those with chronic diseases.
Dr. Hussain Abdul Rahman Al Rand, Assistant Under-Secretary for the Public Health Sector, stressed that the annual seasonal flu campaign reaffirms the ministry’s commitment to immunising all community members against infectious diseases, including influenza, and to educating them about how to prevent it by providing facts and information that encourages taking part in the annual vaccination campaigns, thus raising the vaccination coverage.
"In addition to reducing transmission of infection and raising the level of community awareness, such campaigns will also contribute to developing the skills and expertise of health workers and introducing them to best practices regarding preventive measures recommended by the World Health Organisation,"
Al Rand said.
