Seasonal flu vaccination begins with high interest in Kosovo, first case confirmed

In Kosovo, vaccination against seasonal influenza has begun since the first days of this month, while the interest of citizens in receiving this vaccine is proving to be quite high. While the immunization process continues, the National Institute of Public Health has also confirmed the first case of seasonal influenza for this season, emphasizing the importance of vaccination for the protection of public health.

Faik Hoti from the National Institute of Public Health, calling for greater participation in vaccination, confirmed that the first case of seasonal flu for this year has already been registered at the National Institute of Public Health.

Hoti emphasized that the vaccine will be offered free of charge to the most vulnerable groups, including people over 65 years old, those with chronic illnesses, pregnant women, children over 6 months old, and healthcare workers.

"A few days ago, vaccination against seasonal flu began in Kosovo, since the flu vaccines were provided on time, there are about 86 thousand doses that will be used to vaccinate priority risk groups such as people over the age of 65, people with chronic diseases, pregnant women, children from the age of 6 months and older, as well as other people with compromised immunity. This year, vaccination has started on time and we as institutions call on citizens to go to vaccination centers... to get the vaccine, since this year it is seen that we may have cases and we as IKSP have only registered 1 case of seasonal flu," he said.

According to Faik Hoti from the National Institute of Public Health, thousands of citizens are already vaccinated against seasonal flu, but he underlines that it is necessary for healthcare personnel to also be included in the immunization process.

"Vaccination began in early October, in the first week, interest is extremely good, we see reports from family medicine centers that there is increased interest, and what is positive is that people in Kosovo have understood that preventive culture or prevention is the most effective way to respond to any public health challenge, in the specific case of influenza," he said.

Hoti says that seasonal flu immunization is the most effective way to prevent flu complications.

"The seasonal flu vaccine is really the best protection and has preventive effects... There is no more efficient, practical and accessible means of preventing the flu than the vaccine. All citizens who fall into the risk category should be vaccinated, and we wanted to include the medical community in these categories because they are a category that has a lot of contact with citizens," he said.

Over 67 citizens were immunized against seasonal flu in Kosovo last year, while this year health authorities aim for even wider coverage.

"It is definitely possible for every citizen aged 6 months and above to be vaccinated. Normally, some groups are more prioritized... last year there were over 67 vaccinated people. We expect that this year there will be even more because we are holding various informational meetings with both citizens and the medical community so that the vaccination rate increases and we have a protected population with the means to protect ourselves," Hoti declared.

Last year, over 700 cases of seasonal flu, both with viruses A and B, were registered in Kosovo.

Categories such as people with chronic diseases under the age of 65, healthcare workers, pregnant women, children from 6 months to 5 years old with health indications are some of the most prioritized categories to be vaccinated with the seasonal flu vaccine. /KP/