A dad who contracted swine flu and nearly died has warned others to make sure they get their jab this season amid fears over take-up by at-risk groups.
Craig Richter usually gets vaccinated against the seasonal illness annually, but in the one year he skipped it the Aberdeen father-of-two ended up in an induced coma for more than a week.
It took him more than six months of recovery and physiotherapy before he was able to return to work as a hospital porter at Woodend.
Mr Richter has now urged those who haven’t had the injection yet to book an appointment as soon as possible.
People with chronic respiratory disease, diabetes, and those over 65 years old or pregnant are among the groups who can get free jabs – as well as health and social care workers.
But over the course of the flu season last year more than 80,000 people across the north-east who were eligible didn’t get vaccinated, and it is feared that number could increase this year.
Mr Richter said: “I had come down with a cold, and I thought there wouldn’t be a chance I would get the flu as well, so I never took the vaccine.
“I then contracted what I first thought was just a bad case of flu, but it turned out to be swine flu and pneumonia.
“I was taking paracetamol, my inhalers and that, but it became apparent that something was seriously wrong when I collapsed at home.
“I went to the doctors, collapsed again, and was rushed to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary’s infection unit.”
After a few days Mr Richter was put into an induced coma after doctors were unable to stabilise his breathing.
The 42-year-old said: “They put me to sleep, fed me, and I later found out that I was put on to an extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) machine, which is like an artificial lung, to help me breathe.
“Once I came out of the coma in the January, I was able to go home a bit after that, but it was a lot of recovery ahead of me.
“And I was told it could have all been avoided if I had taken the flu jab.”
Mr Richter says that while eight years have passed since his frightening ordeal, it still haunts him enough to make him act when flu season comes around again.
“There’s never a year now that I don’t get it, I always make sure I go for it no matter what – I just don’t take any chances with it.”
Diana Webster, consultant in public health medicine at NHS Grampian said: “As Craig’s experience shows, flu is much more severe than a cold.
“It’s a serious virus that can make even healthy people extremely unwell.
“It is well known that older people, children, pregnant women and those who have other health conditions are more likely to experience complications as a result of influenza.
“In the most serious cases, it can result in hospitalisation and sometimes even death.
“The flu season in Grampian begins as the weather gets colder, so get the vaccine as soon as you can.
“The vaccine is available from now through to the end of March.
“People should be aware that last year’s vaccine won’t necessarily protect you from this year’s flu viruses.
“If you are over 65 years of age, are pregnant, have an underlying medical condition or work in health or social care you should be immunised every year because the virus changes constantly and your immunity reduces over time.”