Her lips stained.

Sequinned carmine heels.

Beso.

Dennett thanks for the haiku prompt red.

Her lips stained.

Sequinned carmine heels.

Beso.

Tracy Aston for the haiku prompt red.

People stopped. Noticed.

He always had it.

Lucky to have called this elegant “ gentleman “ : DAD.

Thanks to Brett Christensen for the haiku prompt. : elegant.

Daunting.

I will.Hear me roar.

Thanks to @ Deborah Christensen for the haiku prompt strength.

Most people in India do not get an annual flu vaccination ; mostly due to lack of knowledge, fear of vaccinations, lack of physician and public health information as well as cost issues.

India will soon surpass Brazil in total number of COVID infections according to available data which would make it second only to the United States. This is cause for concern as there continues to be more cases in rural areas and in migrants returning to larger cities.

The potential twindemic of COVID plus flu could be catastrophic for a country stretched to it’s limits on terms of medical workers, supplies and facilities.

The time to act is NOW. Flu vaccine drives, information, education, masking, distancing, hygiene. The Government of India by making annual flu vaccine available and accessible to all can act as a role model for other poor countries with large amounts of migrants and uninsured workers.

In 1918 the great influenza pandemic struck, starting in the US it quickly spread globally during World war 1 accounting for more than 500 million deaths.

Since then there have been other pandemics. Such as SARS, MERS, swine flu and Ebola but not quite as deadly.

Every year influenza A and B cause seasonal flu that can cause serious complications and deaths. Starting from 1945 an annual flu vaccine tailored to prevailing subtypes is available.From 1960 onwards annual flu vaccination became recommended in the US and many other countries followed suit.

115 WHO member countries. have made annual flu vaccine recommendations , among them richer nations who also have additional vaccine policies in place for other disease as well as flu have suffered less. economic and health care burden from this potentially deadly disease.

The WHO and CDC recommend all children. 6 months to age 5, those above 60, pregnant women , health care workers and those with chronic conditions receive it.

Every year, on an average, 3–5 million cases of seasonal flu and 290,000–650,000 deaths are reported globally. In high-income countries, deaths occur in elderly (65 and older) while in the low and middle income countries like India, 99 per cent of deaths are in children under five with influenza-related lower respiratory tract infections.

A safe quadrivalent vaccine with 2 strains of influenza virus A and 2 of influenza virus B is available for the current season 2020.

It does not cause the flu, contain mercury or steroids.

There are versions safe for children, pregnant women, the elderly, asthmatics, those with diabetes and other chronic conditions. Many vaccines have a small egg component but a vegan version is also available.

The Indian Academy of Pediatrics has also recommended annual flu for kids 6 months to 5 years annually. There is no link between any child vaccine and autism. ( A study by Dr Wakefield was retracted as it was incorrect and fraudulent ).

The number of flu related deaths in India increased 5 fold from 5004. in 2012 to 28,798 in 2019.

There is seasonal variation in India coinciding with the monsoons. Those in the west, north, east central India should be vaccinated starting from March onwards or once the vaccine becomes available. For South India, October to November and for Srinagar: January to March.

The Indian council of medical research and government of India recommend annual flu vaccine for all pregnant women, health care workers, those with chronic conditions and the elderly.

India does not yet however sadly have an annual flu vaccine policy.

The virus mutated and is highly contagious. From mild respiratory illness with fever, muscle aches to bronchitis, pneumonia and even death : all are possible.

Currently:

Abbott India

Sanofi

Serum institute of India all have a quadrivalent vaccine available in the Indian market.

Some names:

Influvac

Fluzone,

Flublok ( vegan).

You can contact your pharmacist to check availability and price in your area.

There is also some suggestion of bystander immunity in those that have received annual flu shots in the past that might help with recovery from COVID-19.

India needs more persons to get the seasonal flu vaccine annually. In a country of 1.3 billion the government is yet to institute a flu vaccine policy.

This can be India’s wake up call and an inspiration to other developing nations.

Gates Foundation

The Brookings Institution

Perspectives

FO Sanofi A. Groupe

CNN

times of india epaper

Avocado egg toast.

Graffiti Art.

Thanks for the prompt: Consume.

Brett Christensen

Energetic right, lazy left.

Synapses flutter.

Crisscrossed.

Photo by:

Alexander Krivitskiy ( unsplash).

Thanks to: Brett Christensen for the haiku prompts energy and graceful.

2.5 years post a massive TBI I can workout and enjoy getting to know my neurons better!

Won’t persevere

Born with wings, beautiful soon.

Thanks to Deborah Christensen for the haiku prompt butterfly.

Small town girl.

Works tirelessly. Sends money home.

Bought her lipstick, always pads. Tiny earrings.

I try to be patient. Sometimes I get frustrated. And lose my temper.TBI and meds do that sometimes.

I apologise always.

Being compassionate and staying compassionate to those who need it most is a learning process.Only with constant practice can it hopefully reach automation.

This haiku is dedicated to Elsa our housekeeper. Thank you Elsa. You make me want to be better everyday.

Thank you to Brett Christensen for the haiku prompt compassion.