Flu vaccination starts today in Serbia: Can you receive Covid jab at the same time?

Photo: Tanjug/Dusan Anicic

Vaccination against seasonal flu starts today, although it was announced earlier that it will start on Friday, October 15, and for now, only vaccines from the Torlak Institute of Virology, Vaccines and Sera from Belgrade are available for those who want to be vaccinated. Although deliveries of more than 500,000 vaccines from foreign manufacturers have been agreed, they have not yet arrived in the country.

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Speaking on RTS, the director of the Torlak Institute, Dr. Verica Jovanovic, said that vaccination starts today and that 100,000 doses from the Torlak Institute are now available to those who want to protect themselves against this virus. She added that delivery is expected very soon of 470,000 doses of the tetravalent vaccine, followed by another 100,000 doses of the TorVaxFlu vaccine.

"I recommend that all persons at risk get vaccinated as soon as possible because protection is necessary. Protection against the flu virus is of great importance this season as well, considering the complications that can occur if the flu and Covid occur concurrently," stressed Dr. Verica Jovanovic.

She added that the flu virus has not yet been confirmed in any lab in Serbia.

"The vaccines contain those strains that were used in previous seasons, but that have been approved this season as well according to the recommendation of the WHO. This is done based on the prevalence of vaccine strains in the northern hemisphere for the previous season. These are two types of virus A and two types of virus B," explained Dr. Jovanovic.

She even said that she expects that this year, just like last year, we will not have the flu virus.

"We expect that this year will be like the previous one, that we will not have the flu virus, because it was not identified in laboratories last year. We are behaving in the same way as every season, while this year we have another additional burden and risk that we need to act against together, and that is Covid 19," said Dr. Jovanovic.

Application also possible through eGovernment portal

All those who want to receive the flu shot can express their interest through the eGovernment portal. That way, they can avoid any crowds in their healthcare centers.

By filling out a simple questionnaire, citizens express interest in receiving the seasonal flu vaccine. Completing the questionnaire and sending the request does not give consent for vaccination, but only expresses interest.

Anyone can change or delete their expressed interest at any time.

When to get vaccinated against flu after getting Covid jab

Although experts have previously stated that a person should wait for a month after the Covid 19 shot before receiving the flu vaccine, the latest stance is that this break is not needed.

As Dr. Jovanovic stated, the latest position of the World Health Organization and the National Committee for Immunization shows that the flu vaccine and the Covid vaccine can be received at the same time, but that the advice is that they should be taken in different arms.

The flu vaccination last year saw record number of people get it. From October 1 to December 30, more than 400,000 people got vaccinated, which is 100,000 more than in the previous year, 2019.

Last year, for the first time in 15 years, the Torlak Institute of Virology, Vaccines and Sera produced its own vaccine.

The flu vaccine is always free and available in all healthcare centers

(Telegraf.rs)