The government was criticised in Parliament this evening for not having done enough to warn people that the flu vaccine made available this year was not as effective as in the past.

The shadow minister for health, Claudette Buttigieg, said that while the vaccine mismatch with the most prevalent strain was not the government's fault, more could have been done to warn people.

She had hardly seen anything about this, other than comments by the parliamentary secretary of health to Times of Malta.

Replying, Chris Fearne, Parliamentary Secretary for Health, said that while the effectiveness of the vaccine in the Northern Hemisphere was this year less than in the past, it was never completely effective.

Therefore, the Health Department every year, including this year, held a campaign warning people about how to avoid the flu and how to avoid spreading it, such as by washing hands, keeping children at home when sick, and avoiding crowds.

When news started coming out of the US, in December, that this year's vaccine was less effective, participation in radio and TV programmes about this matter was stepped up. Flyers and adverts were also issued.

Ms Buttigieg said that in this digital age, more could have been done, including messages on the internet.

Mr Fearne said he did not know whether this had been done and would seek more information from the Health Promotion and Disease Prevention unit.

The US Centres for Disease Control (CDC) reported in January that more than three-quarters of people who got this season's flu shot could get the virus anyway, given a mismatch between the flu strains covered by the shot and those actually causing illness in people.

An interim CDC report found the shot was only 23 percent effective overall, a performance. The CDC said that the predominant flu virus, influenza A (H3N2), had "drifted" or changed genetically since the shot was made.

The Sunday Times of Malta reported on February 15 that the flu vaccine has proved almost useless this winter leading to the hospitalisation of some 700 more patients between December and January than the previous year.

The main strain of influenza in circulation this year mutated from the type used in the jab putting a greater strain on the island’s health services.

See also http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20150215/local/Flu-jab-almost-useless.556068