The Sun
Wednesday May 8, 2019
9
A quick jab can help beat the flu By Bill McElhinney Winter is on the way, and it’s time to think about getting a flu shot. Stocks of the flu vaccine are now available across the country at GP practices and some pharmacies. Influenza immunisation shots are free for pregnant women and those aged 65 and over. The vaccine is also funded for people under 65 who have heart or respiratory disease, severe asthma, diabetes, cancer and other serious conditions which can
put them at greater risk. Most people suffer only moderate illness from flu, but around 400 New Zealanders die each year from the disease. This year’s funded vaccine protects against four strains of influenza, including influenza A (H3N2) and influenza B. Influenza is a “significant” public health issue in New Zealand, according to the Ministry of Health. It is easily spread through talking, coughing and sneezing.
Each year 10-20 per cent of New Zealanders will become infected. Health Minister David Clark says influenza immunisation is important. “We can protect ourselves and our families by getting immunised, to reduce the spread of influenza to the most vulnerable people in our community,” he says. Last winter saw a “record” number of New Zealanders immunised - 1.3 million - after the northern hemisphere had a particularly severe winter.
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Nurse Dean Monk at Omaka Medical giving a patient their flu injection. Their weekly clinics have been busy preparing patients for the winter ahead.
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By Bill McElhinney After a long, hot and dry summer in Marlborough the April rains arrived with a vengeance. Last month was wetter than normal, Marlborough Research Centre scientist Rob Agnew says. January and February both recorded very low rainfall totals, but in March and April there was well above average rain. Daily sunshine hours during April varied quite markedly, as is often the case in a month with high rainfall, Rob says. Eight days recorded between 10 and 11 hour’s sunshine, and 10 hours sunshine in April is a high total considering that the average daily sunshine for April is 6.3 hours. In contrast there also four days that each recorded less than one hour of sunshine. Unsurprisingly, these were all days when it was raining. Total rainfall for Blenheim from January to April 2019 is 186.6 mm, slightly above the long-term average. Sunshine for April was 211.2 hours, sunnier than last year but not as sunny as April 2016 when 238.3 hours of sunshine was recorded. Total sunshine for Blenheim
from January to April this year is 1044.2 hours, above the long-term average of 909.7 hours (1986-2018). Mean temperature of 13.2°C was 0.3°C below the longterm average temperature for April of 13.5°C. The last year in which April recorded a below average mean temperature was 2011; i.e. the 7 years 2012-2018 all recorded an above average April mean temperature. The temperature was below average for the first three weeks in April, but the fourth week of the month was well above average and dragged the overall mean temperature for the month back up to 13.2C. Quite remarkably two mornings during April recorded exactly the same air and grass minimum temperatures. April 13 and April 30 both recorded air minimums of 2.1°C and grass minimums of -0.6°C. These were the coldest mornings of the month. A -0.6°C grass minimum temperature does not quite classify as a ground frost. To be a ground frost the temperature has to be -1.0°C or below. The hottest day was April 1 with a maximum temperature of 24.2°C.
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