https://www.bmj.com/content/391/bmj.r2638
"It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas—Christmas 2020, that is. Surging
infections, rising hospital admissions, and schools closing under the weight of
infection. This time it is flu rather than covid-19 making headlines and there
are important differences in who it affects and how. But we trivialise seasonal
influenza at our peril. Many of the lessons we learnt during the covid pandemic
about what needs to be done to ease the spread of infection still apply,
although we are consistently failing to follow them.
You won’t remember the flu waves of 2020/21 because there weren’t any. Covid
measures effectively controlled the flu virus. We talked at the time of
“building back better,” using the lessons of covid to improve future responses,
especially to predictable winter pressures. It is frustrating that, five years
on, governments and institutions are still ignoring lessons about the systemic
measures that are necessary if people are to act in ways that protect
themselves (and others) from infection.
Firstly, we need to get vaccinated. Some of us are eligible for a free flu
vaccine on the NHS, while others could consider paying as little as £10 on the
high street (although this would still be too much for many). Vaccines aren’t
perfect and their effectiveness varies, but they spare countless people misery
and, at scale, can mean schools stay open and hospitals can cope. Yet uptake
remains poor, even among those entitled to free vaccines. By late November,
about 70% of over 65s were vaccinated, but uptake was around only 40% for under
65s at heightened clinical risk, pregnant women, and young children.
Extending eligibility for free vaccines would help boost uptake, but covid-19
also taught us that engagement is key. We should treat hesitancy as
understandable, not delinquent. We can encourage public questions and educate
against mis/disinformation by hosting community sessions with carefully
designed strategies such as pre-bunking myths and using trusted local voices to
promote engagement.
We should also take vaccines to where people are, including workplaces and
schools, so that they are convenient and accessible. Vaccination is communal:
something we do for each other, not just ourselves. We know that framing the
response as “we”, not just “me”, delivers far better outcomes. It makes people
more concerned to act in ways that protect others in the community and to
support them if they fall ill. Connection and support also increases resilience
in the face of illness.
Secondly, people should isolate themselves if they develop symptoms of a
respiratory infection. This means staying at home and, if possible, keeping
away from others. For many, isolation simply isn’t feasible. During covid
restrictions, people from low income and ethnic minority groups broke curfew
more often. This was not because of lack of will, but because they often
couldn’t afford to miss work. That’s why so many called for better support for
self-isolation and liveable sick pay, policies that have proven effective
elsewhere."
Via Violet Blue’s
Threat Model - Covid: December 18, 2025
https://www.patreon.com/posts/covid-december-146121890
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
