The Midcounties Co-operative Pharmacy Helps Business Fight Flu

UK, 11/23/2012 / SubmitMyPR /

A leading pharmacy has launched a 'flu jab at work' service to help businesses in the Midlands combat days lost to the virus.

Pharmacists from The Midcounties Co-operative Pharmacy will visit workplaces to enable staff to get vaccinated against the winter bug, making it more convenient.

According to statistics from the Confederation of British Industry, unplanned absence from work amounted to a loss of £17 billion in 2011 - the greatest single cause of lost productivity. Almost 95% of these sick days were taken for minor illnesses such as colds and flu*.

This vaccination offers combined protection against various strains of seasonal influenza viruses expected in the coming months as well as swine flu (H1N1) and costs £14 per employee for a simple in-work service where a pharmacist will visit a business’s office to potentially protect an entire workforce with flu treatment.

Alternatively, workers can visit their local Midcounties Co-operative Pharmacy for the jab at a cost of £10, which some companies may pay on their staff's behalf.

Pradeep Prabhu, Pharmacy Support Services Manager, said: "Companies are reliant on their workforce so it's important they consider the impact illness can have on their business. For example, for 50 employees to be vaccinated in store at a Midcounties Co-operative Pharmacy, it would cost £500, whereas the average cost of absence per employee can add up to £760*.

"We are trying to make it as quick and easy as possible for workers and their employers to combat flu this winter, which our in-business service is ideal for as it causes minimal disruption to the working day and offers a one-on-one, high quality service. The chances of contracting flu can easily be reduced by a simple jab as well as the risk of the virus being passed around, which is common in a working environment.

"As a co-operative business, we see this as an extension of the services we offer to the communities we're rooted in."

To arrange for a pharmacist to visit your business or speak to a member of The Midcounties Co-operative Pharmacy team regarding medicines or vitamins and minerals, call 01926 516087.

ENDS
*Statistics taken from CBI 'Absence and Workplace Health Survey 2011'

More information: http://www.cbi.org.uk/media/955604/2011.05-healthy_returns_-_absence_and_workplace_health_survey_2011.pdf

NOTES FOR EDITORS

The Midcounties Co-operative has its headquarters in Warwickshire, with trading outlets in Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire, Wiltshire, Shropshire, West Midlands, Worcestershire and the surrounding counties.

The Society’s trading groups are food retail, funeral, travel, pharmacy, childcare nurseries, employee benefits and energy. The Midcounties Co-operative is the largest independent co-operative society in the UK and has more than 470 branches, and 245,000 active trading members. It has recently been ranked in The Sunday Times Best 100 Companies To Work For list.

The Society's mission statement is 'To be a successful consumer co-operative working towards creating a better, fairer world, and to enhance the lives of our colleagues, members, customers, and the communities we serve'.

For more details call Sarah Stevenson at Seal on 0121 616 5800.

Visit www.midcounties.coop

The United Nations General Assembly has declared 2012 as the International Year of Co-operatives, highlighting the contribution of co-operatives to socio-economic development, particularly their impact on poverty reduction, employment generation and social integration. The Year will highlight the strengths of the co-operative business model as an alternative means of doing business and furthering socio-economic development.