Monday, June 1, 2009

Tired of trying to Get Typhoid Shots.

A few days back, amid the mighty brou ha ha in the Press about Swine Flue being on the Ship we are going on our cruise on, our Last born decided to check again what health precautions we were supposed to have taken before we left. In doing so she discovered that we should have checked to see if our Hepatitis A & B immunisation was up to date and had a typhoid shot, as our last one was about 20 years ago, and not in the last three! (Which is apparently only as long as they are good for!)
So on the Thursday, a week before the cruise (and 6 days before we fly from here in Melbourne up to Sydney the day before,) I went up to the Doctors to have a chat.
The upshot was that I had a blood test there and then to check if I was still immune to Hepatitis, and then was to come back the next morning with my wife and we would get a prescription and then go to a nearby Chemist, get the Typhoid material and bring it back to the Doctor, who would then give it to us there and then.
That night, our last born said all her friends were saying we should also get the normal flu shot, for even though it is ineffective against swine flu, it is still effective against 3 of the other common strains of Flu currently around and as we would soon be mixing with nearly 3000 others, there could be more of a chance of getting that instead.
So the following morning Friday, my wife and I go to the Doctors and she takes the blood test and having mentioned the possibility of getting flu shots, got them there and then. We then went across he road and got the Typhoid material and fronted back up at the Doctor’s only to be told that we couldn’t have the typhoid shots then, because we had just had the flu shots and the two might not be good party partners. So we were told to come back on Monday for the Typhoid shots. So Yesterday morning (Monday) I rang to make the appointment only to be told that that was the Doctor’s day off and so now we are going up later this morning and hopefully then, we will finally get the typhoid shots. If not, you will soon find a postscript to this blog!!!!!!!!!!!!
Still and all, despite that, although the chances of getting typhoid are pretty slim, it is best not to take chances and at least now we know where we stand in regard to Hepatitis A& B, Typhoid and the 3 main common Flu virus currently going around. Although that last one may not be much comfit. Many years ago in South Africa we all had Flu shots one year, only for my wife who never had flu before, to get it. When I complained to the Doctor, he brightly replied, “Oh what she got was a different strain!!!!!!!!”

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