Supplies of the 2020 flu vaccine have arrived at chemists across Australia.
Pharmacist Danielle Cummings works at Terry White Chemmart in Melbourne.
She says with the coronavirus causing heightened health concerns among the Australian public, staff are expecting unprecedented demand.
"We are expecting an increase in enquires and demand this year, because it is very important to protect yourself from influenza virus and not to put too much pressure on the health system with the impending cases of coronavirus. We are usually encouraging patients to be vaccinated in Autumn, which will protect them for the peak of the flu season, which is usually between June and September."
More than 313,000 Australians were infected with the flu last year, and 900 people died.
Danielle McMullen, Vice President of the Australian Medical Association's New South Wales branch, says it's possible to contract both the flu and coronavirus at the same time.
"The two illnesses cause pretty similar symptoms and both can be dangerous to our elderly, our very young and people who've got other health conditions. So this year, please get a flu vaccine."
The Department of Health has secured what it's described as “the largest ever supply” of a seasonal flu vaccine.
The Department recommends everyone aged six months and over gets immunised.
But health researchers say less than half of all Australians follow that advice.
Holly Seale is a Senior Lecturer at the University of New South Wales' School of Public Health and Community Medicine.
"What we should be aiming for is about 75 per cent uptake, so we could be doing better. Why should we be doing that? Because those people might be parents, they might be caregivers to people who are elderly or they may colleagues at work who are immunosuppressant* and they don't know who they may inadvertently spreading the flu to. That's why, as a community, we can now help each other in this space."
Under the Federal Government’s National Immunisation Program, many Australians are eligible for free flu vaccines.
They include young children, pregnant women, people aged 65 and over, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and those with pre-existing medical conditions leading to a higher risk of flu complications.
For others, the flu vaccine is available at pharmacies and G-Ps for between $10 and $25.
So as the world waits for a coronavirus vaccine, Dr Seale says the best prevention comes at no cost:
"Making sure that you're washing your hands, making sure that you're covering your cough, those are the strategies that will protect against COVID or this new coronavirus at the moment."
