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The HSE has issued advice to businesses in Ireland regarding planning for Swine flue or the Influenza (H1N1) pandemic.

There have been 53 confirmed cases of swine flu in the HSE west region. The area covers from Donegal down to Limerick and across to Tipperary. Eight four per cent of cases have presented in people less than 35 years of age.

Strict visitor restrictions are in place in St Luke’s General Hospital for Carlow/Kilkenny, in an effort to protect patients and staff and prevent further spread of swine flu.

Fine Gael TD, John O’Mahony, has called for the relaxation of the licensing regulation rules that govern the availability of medicine in Ireland to allow for the speedier distribution of the swine flu vaccination.

Younger people, those with an underlying illness, pregnant women and people who are obese are the groups who are likely to become most seriously ill and among whom most deaths may be recorded from swine flu, a local health expert revealed this week.

Clinical testing continues into the Swine Flu vaccine which will be available to the Mayo public in coming months. In all it will take nine months for the vaccine to be administered to the whole community, once it is licensed in Europe.

The Health Service Executive this week reminded everyone at risk of annual influenza this winter to ‘Get the vaccine, not the flu’. This year, because of the swine flu pandemic there will be two vaccination campaigns, firstly one for the seasonal flu and later on, one for the swine flu vaccine.

The Health Service Executive West is urging those aged over 65 years and younger people with long term illnesses, such as asthma, heart problems, etc, to avail of the seasonal flu vaccine now.

Three out of four people intend to get the swine flu vaccine when the national vaccination programme gets under way, according to a nationwide survey carried out by the HSE.

The HSE and Department of Health announced that the swine flu vaccination programme will commence on November 2. As very few people in Ireland have any immunity to swine flu, over the coming months, the HSE will offer a swine flu vaccine to the entire population.