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Scott Begbie: Do your civic duty – get your flu jab and Covid booster

Flu and Covid booster vaccine jabs can be administered at the same time for those who are eligible (Photo: Jane Barlow/PA)
Flu and Covid booster vaccine jabs can be administered at the same time for those who are eligible (Photo: Jane Barlow/PA)

Anyone who works in the NHS will tell you just how creaky things are, with Covid still taking its toll, and flu waiting in the wings, writes Scott Begbie.

Getting your winter booster shots is like a trip to Disneyland… sort of.

It’s the queuing system, you see. Or, in the case of the slick operation at Stonehaven Vaccination Centre, the absence of queuing.

I rocked up a few minutes before my designated slot of 12.09pm – yes, they are that precise about it – to be greeted at the door by a lovely nurse as I masked and gelled up. Yeah, remember all that?

I was shown over to a desk to be signed in. Once we established I was me and I was in the right place at the right time, it was off to sit in a chair for, literally, two minutes.

Then, I was whisked in to another lovely nurse, who ran through my previous jabs and made sure I wasn’t allergic to anything and was happy to get stuck like a pin cushion. I was.

And on to the next bay, where yet another lovely nurse double-checked I was me, what I was getting, and did the nippy needful with a bit of advice about taking it easy, might be a bit achy or feel a bit under the weather, but probably wouldn’t, and take plenty of fluids for the next couple of days.

I assume by fluids she didn’t mean beer. Pity.

Then, I was shown over to a bit to sit for five minutes, just to ensure I didn’t keel over. This was worst part of the whole experience because, to pass the time, I read the section in the leaflet about possible side effects.

I’m not a hypochondriac, but I was sitting thinking: “Is my heart rate up? Is my skin tingly? Why can I hear Bill Gates’ voice in my head?”

I made that last bit up – but, then, so did the tinfoil-hat-wearing anti-vaxxers. Yeah, remember all that?

Don’t add to NHS burden

So – bingo, bango, bongo – in and out in less time than it takes to wait for a fish supper in your local chipper.

It really is that easy, that quick, that painless. Which is why everyone who is offered the flu jab and the Covid booster should take it. Not just for your own sake – although why wouldn’t you want protection from a couple of rather nasty viruses that could lay you really low? – but for the sake of the NHS.

As we get into virus season, we should make an effort to remember the simple steps we can take, like washing and sanitising our hands

We’re hearing dire predictions about how the coming winter is going to be tough for our beleaguered health service. If you ask anyone who works in the NHS, they will tell you just how creaky things are, with Covid still taking its toll, and flu waiting in the wings.

The last thing anyone should be doing is adding to that stress needlessly.

Vaccines keep you and others safe. Image: Orpheus FX/Shutterstock

One of the simplest ways not to become a statistic is to get the vaccines that fight the bugs waiting out there for the unwary.

As we get into virus season, we should make an effort to remember the simple steps we can take, like washing and sanitising our hands. And there’s nothing wrong with breaking out the masks if you feel you want another layer of protection.

Let’s not wait for – or allow – things to get really bad again. Don’t give coronavirus the chance to take hold again.

It’s your civic duty to protect yourself, protect others and protect the NHS.


Scott Begbie is entertainment editor for The Press & Journal and Evening Express

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