Businesses across the district are being asked for their help to make sure their most vulnerable employees are protected against swine flu this winter.

Health chiefs at NHS Bradford and Airedale, supported by Bradford Chamber of Commerce, are promoting the importance of having the swine flu jab to ‘at risk’ employees.

It can to protect their health, and that of their colleagues.

It will also ensure businesses can continue to run over winter, when employees are likely to become ill from flu.

About one-fifth of the district’s population fall within the ‘at risk’ groups, including pregnant women and people with health conditions such as asthma, chronic heart disease and diabetes, and people whose immune systems are not working properly. GPs are now contacting all these patients invited them to get their seasonal and swine flu jabs at special clinics.

Some of these clinics will be held during the daytime and employers are being urged to be flexible and allow their staff time off to attend them.

Dr Peter Dickson, medical director of NHS Bradford and Airedale, said: “Winter could be a challenging time and it is anticipated that staff absence could be a significant issue for many organisations.

“Getting ‘at risk’ employees vaccinated will not only help everyone stay healthy, but also help keep teams at work and ahead of the game.

“Swine flu is different to seasonal flu, to which many people have an in-built resistance. As a new virus, very few of us have any resistance to swine flu, meaning that if you never seem to catch normal flu, you won’t necessarily be immune to swine flu.

“This vaccine has been well-tested, is safe and the balance of risks for someone considering swine flu immunisation is strongly in favour of having the vaccine.”

Businesses are also being advised of the best ways to reduce the risk of employees getting swine flu and how to treat those with swine flu symptoms.

This includes promoting good hygiene, such as hand washing and encouraging staff to carry tissues, cover their nose and mouth when sneezing and to dispose of tissues.

Cleaning staff should frequently clean hard surfaces, such as door handles, using normal cleaning products, such as neutral detergent and warm water.