Whooping cough jab

[blonderthanred]

Anyone got any views on this?

I just read on the BBC website that due to the recent cases, pg women are all to be offered a whooping cough jab between 28-38 weeks, to take place at a routine antenatal appt.

I'm 34+3 so I guess they may offer it next week when I go in - it doesn't say whether there will be any notification or info sent, or if I will just be told/offered it on the day. What do people think about this issue, it seems a sudden decision which makes me nervous but I guess there will have been a longer thought process. Plenty of people have the flu jab when pg although I believe that only offers the mother protection, not the baby (?) so I don't know if there are any risks or even if it crosses the placenta.

I was born in '76 when there was a scare about the baby wh cough jab (recently proven false) so I didn't have it and then caught wh cough. I don't know if that will make any difference.

[YellowWellies]

This had been a really helpful thread about the jab (not about politics) until ladies 'up themselves' via their connections 'to power' took over. Get over yourself loves - I bet you're really the office cleaner or post lady .

God if this is what the opinions of a minor minion are - no wonder the political classes seem so odious, pocket filling and generally disconnected. We really do need another political party - but I digress.

[elizaregina]

Thunder

It sounds as if we are all expected to know - how I dont know - instinctively or perhaps - we should gen up on this in our own time - just how the life and times of an MP works?

Its not really our business just how your office or MP functions.

What we should know and shouldnt be bullied into thinking otherwise is that when a directive from the government - ie the DOH issues a notice down the "levels" and that announcement causes stress and anxiety and worry - we should be allowed and encouraged to complain to our MP's - about that gov body.

This is what people have done.

The MP can then pass and feed back to where its appropriate that thier constiuents found this way of issuing a directive to be stressful.

Next time - please look at what went wrong and work on how to make it better.

We should all be looking to improve things and make them better.



I find your attitude quite shocking really, I would love to know which MP you work for - as it sounds like this attitude of ..."what do these morons expect me to do" must be coming from her/him.

[MoonHare]

I agree with VQ this has been an informative and supportive thread about whooping cough and how to make sure women get the jab they need in a timely fashion.

It has been highjacked this afternoon by people with defensive motives concerning their own connection with MPs seeking to point score off some of those like VQ who have tried hardest to be helpful to other women on here. Not on.

[DonnaDoon]

Just incase thats not clear Docs informed me of appointment by telephone whilst I was attending an open workshop held by my MP monthly...and relax :)

[DonnaDoon]

VQ YAY before you go I am booked in for Monday...it might have something to do with my lovely local helpful MP who coincidentally lives 2 streets away from me (he has just informed me) who knows if it was anything to do with his input or not (he certainly has a more powerful voice than little old me)

[ValiumQueen]

I am informed about stuff that interests me. I personally have no interest in politics. This is not a thread about politics, but Whooping Cough. I was not intending to come across as informed. I don't care if you think I am informed or not thunderbolt

I don't like how this thread has turned since halloweeny and thunderbolt have showed up, so I will say goodbye.

[halloweeneyqueeney]

The surgery by now know there is info they should have had and should know how to retrieve it if its lost in the inbox of someone on leave or in a junk filter

emails did go out last week! and a GP should know who to contact if they appear to have been missed/misplaced the email!

pathogens change every year and at risk groups change every year... they may not know exactly WHAT is going to be the new thing this year but they shouldn't be surprized that something LIKE this has happened and should know what to do to update themselves and how to respond to enquiries about the latest scare.. cause there's always something

[ValiumQueen]

I completely got that donna as I too have had that worry.

I did complain to my surgery after I had spoken to Public Health, and they blatantly lied to me. I spoke to my MP as I needed to talk to someone, feel that someone cared and could perhaps take it further. I have never been to an MP in my life, and I am very old! It helped. I personally think MPs do very little, but I felt utterly helpless.

[halloweeneyqueeney]

something similar may happen when I'm 37 weeks and I don't want the powers that be thinking twice about me even being allowed the information as and when!

[DonnaDoon]

And why oh why would I for instance complain to my surgery when they have received no information from the powers that be. Its not my surgerys fault.

[DonnaDoon]

VQ I said that I would rather have been kept in the dark because I wouldnt have had this worry this week :(

[halloweeneyqueeney]

"I do not think anyone has said information should have been withheld"
most have not deliberately no (although DonnaDoon said she'ld prefer that!!)

but the letters to MPs may actually be saying exactly that! so I think people need to thing about who they really should be complaining to (perhaps their individual surgery?) and how they are wording it, and who they are claiming to represent (i.e. only themselves, not all of us!)

[DonnaDoon]

I resent being mocked as A delicate little flower that cant cope with the worry If I was only 27 weeks I wouldnt be jarred either way trust me.

[ValiumQueen]

thunderbolt you did kick up a fuss because you are later in your pregnancy. halloweeney is implying that we should all be patient and wait until the protocols and supplies are in place. That happened on Monday, so why are women still being fobbed off? My argument still is that halloweeney has the luxury of time, so I am not quite sure what you are agreeing with her about? I do not think anyone has said information should have been withheld.

[halloweeneyqueeney]

oh come on, what's the practical difference between an early "heads up" if not that it is held back from public knowledge for a few days

there is a distinct point where an emerging trend is deemed a risk

and yes if they sent it out to all GPs and not sent it to press until stocks were in and letters gone out, there would have been more panic as surgery staff send chinese whispers out to their pregnant relatives (which some would even if they shouldn't!)

[halloweeneyqueeney]

shelly a complaint about the lack of that sort of communication should be directed at individual surgeries, not MPs about the fact that there is was an inevitable delay between the info and the application, people really need to think what they are asking of their MPs! really!

yes it is a commonly used medication, but if the protocols about WHO commonly gets a certain medication changes then that is a big deal that everyone involved needs to be sure of.

[ShellyBobbs]

Halloween I have NEVER said delay it, I said they could have had a heads up, I'm sure the announcement wasn't broadcast the minute it became evident. There was a trend leading up to the announcement, nobody sat up in wide awake in the middle of the night and thought 'we MUST announce it now'.

This thread has shown that contrary to myth, pregnant women are not delicate little flowers, unless the flowers are the ones held by Dirty Den's first time killer.

[ShellyBobbs]

And here is an example of how it should have been done, this was done on the MONDAY after the announcement by one of my local surgeries.

Anyone phoning in about it had their details taken and were told they would be contacted later in the day when the surgery knew more.

They made a list of all the pregnant women on their 'books' who were within the catchment.

Stocks were ordered.

Every woman on the list and any who had phoned in were contacted and given an appointment.

They started vaccinating today, all paperwork is in place.


Now that I would have been VERY happy with. I think many others would have been too. That is all we wanted, just to make it clear to anyone who is wondering what we are 'moaning at'.

[halloweeneyqueeney]

Shelly I've HAD whooping cough and the memories of it still frighten me so believe me I feel urgenly about this too!

and I understand from personal experience how scary it is to be caught on on the borderline of something like this too!

but even to say "tell the GPs a day before the press" = tell us a day later and I do not agree with anyone who is asking for info like this to be witheld from us for even a day because we are delicate little flowers of pregnant women who just can't cope with the worry

[ValiumQueen]

In relation to the paperwork, the doctors were emailed early this week and were told clearly that they did not need to wait for paperwork. This has been stated clearly up thread.

[MoonHare]

On Friday 28th Sept unless your Receptionist/Practice Nurse/GP had seen/heard the news that day they didn't even know vaccines were to be offered.

Surgeries could have been sent the guidance that they received on Monday 1st on 28th instead (are we expected to believe that someone sat in Dept of Health all weekend writing it? And if they did then this is even more of a shower than first appears...) then all surgeries would have known that they were allowed to administer opportunistically at the request of pregnant women who were coming up to 38 weeks. They would have also been able to advise all pregnant women that they were planning their strategy for immunisation and how they intended to let everyone know.

The point is because the GPs were not informed at all before/simultaneously with the media no practice was even able to be a tiny bit prepared, even down to just taking the inevitable phone calls from women.

[ValiumQueen]

halloweeney you are not in the same position as us. You cannot even have it yet at 27 weeks. Trust me, it looks very different when you are almost at term.

In this day of instant communication, there is no excuse for the delay and the blatant lies we have been told. The surgeries already have supplies, but lied to us about that, then tried the emotional blackmail route. Not good enough.

I think I have done very well not to swear.