A businessman who says he was turned down for a Covid vaccine because of "allergy concerns" had told of his fight for survival after spending 38 days in intensive care.

Chris Jackson, 40, who owns a surveying firm, said he was in good health with no underlying conditions when he contracted the virus earlier this year.

He said his family were told to prepare for the worst twice after his condition deteriorated. 

Sharing his account of his illness on the social media platform Linkedin he paid tribute to the "expertise" of staff at Fairfield General Hospital, and Salford Royal Hospital, where he spent 14 days in an induced coma.

The Herald:

He said he was facing a long recovery and said he wanted to tell his story to emphasis the importance of vaccination.

He wrote: "This is a difficult post for me. As someone who is very active on LinkedIn  I haven’t been on since the beginning of July.

"I caught Covid. This didn’t go very well for me as I ended up in ICU for 38 days with 14 days in a coma and on a ventilator!

"Unfortunately I was not vaccinated when I caught Covid as I was turned away from the vaccine centre due to allergy concerns.

The Herald:

"I am however only 40 and had no underlying health issues and was fit and healthy.

"The picture shows one of the many different oxygen aids I had before things took a turn for the worse, they are horrible and you really need to take advantage of the vaccine to hopefully stop you getting to this stage!

"I was so close to death that my wife and family was told to prepare themselves for the worst on a couple of occasions.

"If I had been able to have the vaccine, myself and my family wouldn’t have had to go through this so I urge you if you can have the vaccine please get it!

"I wouldn’t be alive today without the expertise of the amazing NHS staff on the front line!"

Following close national surveillance, the MHRA (Medicines and Health Products Regulatory Agency) is no longer advising that individuals with a history of anaphylaxis to any vaccine, medicine or food do not get the vaccine.

The latest information states vaccination can proceed as normal in individuals who have had previous allergic reaction (including anaphylaxis) to a food, insect sting and most medicines, where the trigger has been identified or those with a family history of allergies as well as those with a previous non-systemic reaction to a vaccine

The MHRA said: "There will be a small number of people where the clinical advice is that the COVID-19 vaccination is not suitable for them. We will ensure that the regulations allow for exemptions on medical grounds." 

A 32-year-old pregnant Alabama nurse and her unborn baby died of Covid-19 after the woman refused to get vaccinated against the virus.

Haley Mulkey Richardson, 32, who worked in the labour and delivery unit at a hospital in Pensacola, Florida, contracted Covid-19 around three weeks before she died, last Friday.

She had reportedly harboured concerns that it would cause anaphylactic reactions, which she had suffered from in the past.