Free flu jabs offered to pregnant women at Walsall Manor Hospital
Bosses at Walsall Manor Hospital are introducing free flu jabs for pregnant women to help stop 'severe complications'.
Mothers-to-be will be offered the vaccination from next month when they visit the hospital for their dating scan.
Walsall Healthcare Trust, which runs the Manor, will also be offering a vaccine for whooping cough at the 20-week scan.
If pregnant women catch flu it can lead to more serious issues such as pneumonia, while it can also be serious for unborn and new-born babies, potentially leading to premature birth, low birth weight, stillbirth, or even death in the first weeks of life.
Whooping cough is a 'highly infectious disease', which can lead to pneumonia, permanent brain damage or even death.
Lyn Fitzimons, matron for community midwives and antenatal clinic, said: "We want antenatal women to be fully aware of the health risks that flu and whooping cough carry so they can make an informed choice around vaccination.
"Pregnant women have a higher chance of developing severe complications such as pneumonia if they get flu, particularly in the later stages of pregnancy. Flu can also be serious for unborn and new-born babies".
"The flu vaccine is safe to have at any time during pregnancy and takes around 14 days to provide protection following vaccination.
"It doesn't carry risks for either mum or baby and poses no risk to breastfeeding mums.
"We know that women who have had the flu vaccine while pregnant also pass some protection on to their babies, which lasts for the first few months of their lives.
"Pertussis, or whooping cough, is a highly-infectious disease that can be very serious, particularly for babies under one year of age. It can lead to pneumonia, permanent brain damage or, in the most severe cases, death."
Ms Fitzimons said women who are currently pregnant will receive letters advising them that they will be offered the immunisations when they attend for their routine ultrasound scans.
Women who are further along in their pregnancy, and have already had their scans, will be invited to attend a clinic appointment in October in order to have both immunisations.
