FLU NEWS SCAN: Korean flu vaccine, trust and flu vaccination

Apr 14, 2010

South Korean flu vaccine approved for use in WHO programs
The World Health Organization (WHO) has pre-qualified an influenza vaccine made by Green Cross, a South Korean pharmaceutical company, which means the firm can bid to participate in WHO vaccine distribution programs, according to Bernama, Malaysia's national news agency. Green Cross said the WHO pre-qualified its GC Flu vaccine, developed in 2008. The company said it is the world's fourth vaccine producer to receive WHO pre-qualification for a flu vaccine, after Novartis, GlaxoSmithKline, and Sanofi Pasteur. Green Cross said it submitted necessary documents to the WHO in February, after completing addition clinical trials requested by the agency. Before GC Flu was developed, South Korea had imported all its flu vaccine supplies, the story said.
Apr 14 Bernama report

Survey links public health trust to pandemic vaccine uptake
Trust in public health officials can help predict flu vaccination participation, according to surveys of about 600 Swiss adults that took place before and during the 2009 H1N1 pandemic. The findings were published in the European Journal of Epidemiology. The first part of the survey was designed to gauge attitudes about H5N1 avian influenza, but the novel H1N1 virus emerged during data collection, and the researchers took the opportunity to take a follow-up survey to gauge vaccine uptake and other measures.  They found that trust in medical organizations predicted vaccination behavior, but beliefs about health issues and trust predicted the public's perceptions about the usefulness and efficacy of other flu prevention measures, such as hand washing. The group concluded that the findings highlight the importance of fostering the public's trust when planning and executing public health campaigns.
Apr 8 Eur J Epidemiol abstract