Criticism is loud

Flu vaccinations in vogue

There is currently a huge rush at the public health department in Graz.

(Bild: Pail Sepp/Sepp Pail)

Fully booked appointments in Graz and hardly any vaccines left for over-60s and children: the flu vaccination campaign in Styria is not without its glitches this year either. However, there is no need to worry.

Anyone who has tried to book a flu vaccination appointment on the City of Graz website in the past few days has been disappointed: there are only a few time slots left in December. The rush for the vaccine is great, says Graz City Councillor for Health Robert Krotzer (KPÖ). "Last week, we had around 500 vaccinations a day. The appointments are in high demand." This is also confirmed by the head of the Graz Health Department, Eva Winter. However, she assures that there are enough vaccine doses available.

However, the demand for vaccine doses for people over the age of 60 is becoming a problem. There is a vaccine adapted to the immune system of older people that is currently out of stock - both in Graz and in GP surgeries across the country. "Older people are very willing to be vaccinated, we already knew that from the previous year," says Michael Adomeit, GP and vaccination expert at the Styrian Medical Association. He criticizes the fact that, despite the experience from the last vaccination season, more doses were not procured for this vaccination group. 

Gaps even among the youngest
There were also shortages in the nasal variant of the vaccination for children and adolescents up to the age of 18. The willingness to be vaccinated is also high in this age group. Unlike the "senior citizens' vaccine", however, the vaccine for the youngest should soon be back in stock throughout Styria. 

Eva Winter, Head of the Graz Health Department

(Bild: Pail Sepp/Sepp Pail)

Vaccination even without an appointment
And if you can't get an appointment in Graz? Everyone who needs a vaccination will get one, says Graz City Councillor for Health Krotzer. "You can come to the vaccination center every day between 10.15 am and 1 pm. The waiting time is around 15 to 20 minutes", although there can of course be peak times. There are currently no plans to change the system to make more appointments possible. "This is a good middle way."

The "Krone" self-experiment at the vaccination center in Graz on Thursday morning shows that many people take advantage of the opportunity to get vaccinated despite the fully booked appointments and accept the waiting time. People wait around 50 minutes in the well-filled waiting room on this gloomy morning. It is mainly mothers with children and older people who take advantage of the free vaccination offer.

But even here, there is currently no vaccine for the over-60s. They can now be immunized with the vaccine for everyone between the ages of 18 and 60. Although this is not specially adapted to the immune system of older people, it is still effective, explains Adomeit.

We knew from the previous year that older people are very willing to be vaccinated. Efforts could have been made to obtain more vaccines for this age group.

Michael Adomeit, Hausarzt in Birkfeld

There is currently no general shortage of vaccine, says Robert Krotzer. "The vaccines were delivered late, which is why there was an initial rush." On the whole, however, they are satisfied with the current situation and the progress of the vaccination campaign, explains Winter. Adomeit, on the other hand, would like to see a better organization of the distribution of vaccine doses for next year's vaccination campaign and to learn from the current situation surrounding the bottlenecks.

Young people should also be vaccinated
It is important that young adults are also vaccinated. The severity of the course of a real flu has nothing to do with the age of those affected, says Adomeit. "Regardless of age, there are always hospitalizations, which could be counteracted with a vaccination." 

Anyone can get the flu and Covid vaccination at the City of Graz vaccination center - not just Graz residents. They are free of charge. The right time to get vaccinated is now, before the first big wave of flu rolls in. You should bring your vaccination certificate with you.

Michaela Holzinger, Hannah Michaeler