thought was a heavy cold and infected probably lots of other colleagues before he eventually got a test and got diagnosed. so it is undoubtedly a problem. how big it is we don t know but let s not wait to find out. let s change the information given to both the public and the doctors and health professionals so that we can make everyone aware that at the moment, in this period of time, cold like symptoms are the predominant one is for people testing positive with covid. brute for people testing positive with covid. ~ :, covid. we will leave it there, professor covid. we will leave it there, professor tim covid. we will leave it there, professor tim specter - covid. we will leave it there, professor tim specter from | covid. we will leave it there, i professor tim specter from king s professor tim specterfrom king s couege professor tim specterfrom king s college london. thejoint committee on vaccination and immunisation, which advises the government, says the over 50s and vulnerabl
rising demand for emergency services and mental health services, and preparing for the winter. booster doses would most likely be of current vaccines rather than new versions tweaked to deal with variants. it s unlikely those getting their first doses now will need a third shot this autumn, as young adults tend to have a better immune response. and it s still not been decided whether i2 i7 year olds are to be offered jabs. they re at very low risk from covid, but it might help prevent outbreaks in schools. fergus walsh, bbc news. in a moment, we re going to speak to robert yates, director of the global health programme at the international affairs think tank chatham house, but first, let s speak to professor adam finn, who is a member of thejoint committee on vaccination and immunisation. he s currently working from coimbra in portugal. thank you so much forjoining us.
different covid vaccines and examining whether getting a different third jab from your first two doses may provide extra protection. we are hoping to have the results by the end of august that will go to thejoint committee on vaccination and immunisation. and that will tell us about the side effects it will also tell us if any of the vaccines are not working properly as a booster. and what about flu? the flu jab campaign gets under way in september. flu protect- yourself and others. health service providers say this means decisions will need to be made soon about how covid vaccines are deployed in the autumn. can we combine covid 19 jabs with flu jabs? can you have a covid jab in one arm and a flu jab in another, for example? and also do we vaccinate children? and it s interesting at the moment children definitely are in this delta variant a significant source of transmission.
it comes as borisjohnson said july 19th restrictions easing is still looking good but warned of a rough winter ahead. i m joined now by adam finn, a professor of paediatrics at the university of bristol and member of thejoint committee on vaccination and immunisation. good afternoon to you. can we talk first of all about a booster vaccine? will we need boosters? iii. vaccine? will we need boosters? hi, and vaccine? will we need boosters? h , and that s a good question. i think and that s a good question. i think it s possible but it will be quite difficult to know for sure. in time for making this decision. so, there may be a need basically for contingency planning to do itjust in case it turns out to be necessary. in case it turns out to be necessary- in case it turns out to be necessa . ~ ., , necessary. and how complicated might it be riven necessary. and how complicated might it be given that necessary. and how complicated might it be given that there necessary. and how comp
under way for a possible autumn booster campaign. but that will depend on the answer to some key questions. first, how long will vaccine protection last? immunity will wane at some point but it is unclear when. antibody levels in trial volunteers, some of whom got their first covid jab over a year ago, will give vital clues. third booster doses might be needed only by certain groups such as the over 65s, as immunity levels often decline faster as people age. second, which booster vaccines will be used? a uk trial is comparing seven different covid vaccines and examining whether getting a different third jab from your first two doses may provide extra protection. we are hoping to have the results by the end of august that will go to thejoint committee on vaccination and immunisation. and that will tell us