Flu season 2025 – don’t be caught out!

Flu season is right around the corner – we’ve already started our workplace flu clinics for our clients. It’s not even our busiest time of year, and our nurses can be vaccinating more than 1,000 people a day across Australia!

While we can never predict exactly how significant a flu season is going to be, we have some data from last year that can help inform us.

2024 flu season

There were 365,597 cases of laboratory confirmed influenza cases recorded, which is the highest ever on NNDSS Records. The National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System (NNDSS) coordinates data on over 70 diseases that present a risk to public health in Australia. This helps them to identify trends in diseases, assess the impact of disease control programs and develop policies to reduce the impact of these diseases.

The season started in late April, peaked in early June, and tailed off in October 2024. There were more than 4,000 people (adults and children) admitted to FluCAN (Influenza Complications Alert Network) sentinel hospitals from 1 April to 1 December 2024. Approximately 274 of these people were admitted directly to intensive care.

Tragically, 7 children died from influenza related deaths. Across all the age groups, there were 500 influenza related deaths.

2025 flu season

There were an unusually high number of cases reported in January 2025. While this is technically still looking at the (very) tail-end of the 2024 season, it perhaps could be an indicator of what we may be facing in the coming months.

Protecting yourself and your loved ones

There are many people within the community who can’t be vaccinated for various reasons. Very young babies and people who are immunocompromised are two key groups who can’t be vaccinated against the flu.

When you get your flu jab, you’re not only reducing your risk of catching the flu (or reducing its severity if you do catch it), but you also make it less likely you’ll spread it in your community.

Workplace vaccination clinics – a simple option for employers and employees

Seasonal illness increases absenteeism and reduces workplace productivity. Providing your employees with an easy way to be vaccinated helps keep your workplace healthy and running efficiently.

Don’t forget about COVID!

While it’s no longer at pandemic levels, COVID is still circulating in our communities. It’s currently recommended that you get a booster of the COVID vaccine every 12 months (it’s available every 6 months for 65–75-year-olds, and recommended every 6 months for those over 75). Receiving both the flu and COVID vaccines together is considered safe by public health authorities and medical experts. You can read more about getting your flu and COVID vaccines together on our website.