Publish date: 7 November 2025
Lisa Hale, Community Learning Disability Nurse tell us why she got the flu jab this year.
A bit about me
I'm one of the nurses on the Liverpool LD team. I've worked on the team for ten years. I'm a mum of two so life can get hectic!
Why I got the flu jab this year
Ever since my nurse training I have been getting the flu jab. I make it a priority because I think it's really important to protect my patients and family from the flu. Some of the patients I work with are really vulnerable and I always think that I wouldn't want to put them at any risk of getting sick!
In 2022, I missed getting my annual vaccine. It was during the flu vaccination season that I was busy with moving house, I was off work, and the vaccine ended up being one of the things that I just never got round to doing that year. I never imagined it would have any major consequences.
It was during the middle of December that I started to feel unwell. I put this down to the stress of moving house and just feeling 'under the weather' and carried on trying to get on with everything.
As the days went on I wasn't getting any better. I wear a fitbit watch, and could see my heart rate was very elevated, even at rest. It was this that alerted me that something was going on.
After a trip to my local walk-in centre, and a trip to my GP a few days later, I ended up being sent to my local A&E on New Years Eve. After some tests it turned out I had Flu A and I was prescribed some medication.
Experiencing A&E at Christmas when the NHS is under the most pressure, and seeing the amount of people admitted due to flu was eye opening. It was a really scary experience not knowing what was wrong with me, it was nothing like I've experienced before. I had previously had flu when I was a teenager and this felt very different, I never thought that it would be flu that came up on my test results!
I am so grateful for the staff at my local A&E department, seeing how hard they work at such a busy time was humbling.
Flu… it’s just like a bad cold, isn’t it?
My experience of flu has been nothing like anything I've had before, and it's certainly a myth about it being 'a bad cold'. It really hit home to me just how serious flu can be. I'm lucky to be healthy with no other health concerns, and how the flu got me was scary to experience. I can't imagine how this would be if I had other health concerns or frailties!
Why is the flu vaccine important?
For me, my experience has really been significant in highlighting how serious and life-threatening this can be for people. I have always thought to have my vaccine to protect others I work with, and this just confirms to me why it's so important.
What would you say to encourage others to get vaccinated this winter
If not for yourself, do it to protect your loved ones and your patients! This isn't just something that affects the elderly or the frail, it can affect anyone, and be very serious.
