Influenza returns with the cold season.
In the shadow of Corona, the demand for flu vaccinations is greater this year than in previous years.
There are already bottlenecks in vaccine deliveries, and doctors and pharmacies hardly get any replenishment.
district
- With the rush to his practice last Saturday, internist and family doctor Dr.
Wolfgang Linder from Gilching not counted.
He was specially open on a Saturday to offer a flu vaccination day outside of the office hours.
From his practice on Karolingerstrasse, people were probably lining up around the corner on Römerstrasse.
370 people were vaccinated that day.
A success for Linder on the one hand.
He plans to organize this again next year.
But he also sees a disadvantage.
“We've already given away all of our vaccines.” In a normal year, Linder would have around 380 people vaccinated against the flu virus over the entire flu season. Usually he still has a few doses in the fridge in March.
It's different this year.
This year the doctor hopes that the vaccine will follow.
He is not alone in this.
Dr.
Felizitas Leitner from Weßling says: "We have already inoculated what we otherwise inoculate in a whole season." It is similar with Dr.
Klaus Gröber, senior resident doctor in the district with two practices in Aufkirchen and Pöcking.
Like Leitner, in view of the looming pandemic, he ordered more vaccination doses than in previous years to be on the safe side.
Pre-order in spring
Doctors have to order the vaccine in advance through pharmacies in spring, February and March.
The amount you order is based on experience from previous years.
The pharmacies report the need to the manufacturers so that they can be produced precisely.
Because the pharmacies make advance payments, they are reluctant to sit on vaccination doses.
Because the vaccine has to be refrigerated, storage capacity is also limited.
But the corona pandemic is causing a significantly higher demand for flu vaccinations this year than in previous years.
It is recommended for people over the age of 60, with chronic illnesses or with immunodeficiency.
It is currently in demand from all age groups, reports Leitner.
The increased demand is causing problems for pharmacists.
“The delivery options are pretty exhausted,” says Manuela Schuster-Baumann, owner of the Friedens-Apotheke in Gauting.
And post-production of a vaccine is difficult.
“Vaccine production doesn't just happen overnight,” explains the pharmacist, “that takes months”.
Each batch is individually checked and approved.
What is now available in the peace pharmacy, "that is more or less already contaminated" - that is, reserved for patients - says Schuster-Baumann.
She does not know whether she will still receive the vaccine.
But she remains optimistic: "Hope dies last."
Reordering as an additional challenge
This is also the case with Lea Basar, who coordinates the vaccine orders for the St. Nikolaus pharmacy and the See-Apotheke in Herrsching.
“We're trying our best,” she says.
In the two pharmacies, “a lot of doctors call who we didn't work with before,” says Basar.
And what about yourself?
In the evenings, when the pharmacy is closed, she still hangs out on the phone and calls pharmaceutical manufacturers.
She does not know if and when the vaccine will be delivered again.
“You can usually order more,” says Edeltraud Priller, who runs the Starnberg Olympic pharmacy.
“You can rely on that.” She has never experienced such a bottleneck in her 16 years as a local pharmacist.
Pharmacists advise: Strengthen the immune system
The District Office has not yet become aware of any flu cases this autumn, but the season is only just beginning. The pharmacists advise anyone who would have liked to have been vaccinated but not received a vaccination because of the shortage to strengthen their immune system as much as possible .
Raphael Stefan Felber from the Raphael pharmacy in Starnberg therefore recommends ensuring that you get enough sleep and reduce stress in addition to the AHA rules that are also relevant for the flu virus, i.e. maintaining distance, hygiene and wearing everyday masks.
A healthy diet, fresh air and exercise also help.