- Eligible individuals are urged to come forward for their flu
jab, COVID-19 booster and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)
vaccine
- The RSV vaccine is separate and easy to forget
- RSV is a common virus that circulates every winter and can
lead to serious illness
Simple steps, including three different vaccines, can help
protect you and your family this winter.
Flu vaccinations are already underway across Wales, and many
people are used to coming forward for their flu jab or their
COVID-19 booster. But the RSV vaccine is separate and easy to
forget, especially by those who assume their flu jab covers them
against RSV too. It doesn't, and both matter.
For Joanne, a health visitor from Pembrokeshire, the dangers of
RSV are very real. Her daughter was admitted to hospital on
Christmas Eve after testing positive for RSV. Her right lung had
filled with mucus, and she was placed on a CPAP machine to help
her breathe.
Joanne said:
"Watching your baby struggle to breathe is terrifying. She came
so close to needing to be intubated and spent three weeks on the
high dependency unit.
"Even after we brought her home, I was so afraid of her getting
sick again that it changed how we lived our lives, how often we
saw family and friends. For the whole of her first year, every
cold meant another trip to the GP, needing inhalers, or going
back into hospital just so she could breathe properly.
"I want other parents to understand that RSV isn't just a bad
cold. If you're offered the vaccine, whether that's during
pregnancy or for someone you love who's older, please take it up.
It could save your family from going through what we did."
Respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, is a common virus that
circulates every winter. It usually causes mild symptoms, but for
babies, older people and those with weakened immune systems, it
can lead to serious illness, including bronchiolitis and
pneumonia, with up to 1,000 hospital admissions and 9,000 GP
appointments among over-75s in Wales each year.
The RSV vaccine is offered routinely year-round to all adults
aged 75 and over, and pregnant women to help protect newborn
babies from the virus. Older people only need the vaccine once
and pregnant women should have the vaccine with every pregnancy.
This September, as part of the new Welsh Government's revised
winter preparedness strategy and focus on prevention, the offer
has also been extended to higher-risk adults aged 65 to 74,
including those who are immunosuppressed or have chronic
respiratory disease.
Deputy Minister for Public and Preventative Health, , said:
"Joanne's story is a powerful reminder of how serious RSV can be,
not just for older people but also for our smallest and most
vulnerable babies. No parent should have to spend Christmas at
their baby's hospital bedside.
"I urge all who are eligible to come forward for their flu jab,
their COVID-19 booster and their RSV vaccine. They protect
against different viruses, and it really can make the difference
between a mild illness and a serious hospital stay.
Notes to editors
Notes
Other simple steps can help you protect yourself, your family and
the NHS this winter:
- take up the offer of your flu jab and COVID-19 booster if
you're eligible, alongside your RSV vaccine if invited;
- use your local pharmacy for advice and treatment on coughs,
colds and other minor illnesses;
- check in on elderly or vulnerable neighbours, particularly
during cold spells;
- keep warm at home, and find out about support available
through schemes such as Nest Warm Homes if you're struggling with
heating costs; and
- use NHS services responsibly, so that care is there for those
who need it most.
For more information on RSV eligibility and vaccination, visit
the Public Health Wales website.
