Hospitals set for the annual flu outbreak which is looming

Hospitals and medical staff in the Balearics are slowly getting ready for the annual flu outbreak which is expected to hit the region next week. The Balearic Insalud health service won the battle for more beds just before Christmas in anticipation of the annual influx of patients and local medical centres and health clinics have been handing out information leaflets about flu and what to do in the event of contracting it. The regional vaccination campaign has been completed, with thousands of children and pensioners - those most at risk - having been given the jab, but the outbreak causes annual chaos for local hospitals. The main problem, which medical chiefs have been trying to solve for years, is that at the first sign of flu, the majority of people head straight for their nearest casualty unit - when they should seek advice from the GP at the local health clinic. The strain put on casualty and hospitals is enormous and in many cases unnecessary as beds fill up and casualty staff have to split their task of saving lives with treating flu victims.