Health workers should get first flu shots

The World Health Organization said health-care workers are the "main priority group" for receiving pandemic swine flu vaccine when it becomes available.

Health-care workers should be immunized in all countries to maintain functioning medical systems, Marie-Paule Kieny, director of the WHO's initiative for vaccine research, said. Individual countries should decide on priority when vaccinating other vulnerable populations such as children and the elderly, she said.

The pandemic strain, also called the H1N1 virus, has killed 429 people worldwide since its discovery in the U.S. and Mexico in April, according to the WHO's most recent report. The infection, which has spread as far as New Zealand and Norway, causes little more than a fever and cough in most cases. The majority of those who died were pregnant, had asthma, diabetes or other chronic diseases, according to the WHO.

"It is very important that members of the public do not panic, and continue to follow health advice about swine flu and managing it if they are infected," Laurence Buckman, chairman of the British Medical Association's general practitioners committee.

Kieny said a vaccine should be available by September or October, though it may take until the end of the year to get the product fully licensed by regulators. Authorities will want clinical trials to show the vaccines are safe, she said. Many countries have emergency legal provisions that allow regulators to speed the use of pandemic flu vaccine, Kieny said.

The WHO sees no reason for manufacturers to switch to making pandemic flu shots from seasonal flu vaccine, Kieny said. Production of seasonal flu shots should be completed at the end of this month, she said.