Catch It Bin It Kill It to beat the Flu

5th January 2020

Adopt good respiratory and hand hygiene practices - to ‘Catch it. Bin it. Kill it.' - to help stem flu infections.

We are being encouraged to carry tissues and use them to catch coughs or sneezes, then to bin the tissues and to kill the germs by washing our hands.

Watch David Salisbury, Director of Immunisation, discussing the importance of good hygiene in preventing the spread of flu and norovirus.

"Flu season has now started and so it's really important that people get their flu vaccine as soon as possible to ensure they are protected against this potentially very serious illness. The initial evidence suggests the vaccine is a good match for the main strain of flu that is circulating.

“Flu is very infectious and spread by germs from coughs and sneezes, which can live on hands and surfaces for 24 hours.

“To reduce the risk of spreading flu, use tissues to trap germs when you cough or sneeze, wash your hands often with warm water and soap, and bin used tissues as quickly as possible. Catch it. Bin it. Kill it."

Seasonal flu usually circulates for several weeks each year.

The intensity of circulation depends upon the underlying population immunity, the circulating viruses and external factors such as the weather.

Alongside other diseases like norovirus that normally increase during winter, seasonal flu puts extra pressure on the NHS every year.