N.B. premier uses YouTube to spread swine flu warning.

New Brunswick Premier Shawn Graham is turning to YouTube to raise public awareness of ways to prevent the spread of the swine flu virus.

The bilingual online video that is just more than two minutes long outlines the provincial government’s plan to deal with the spread of the H1N1 virus.

Graham also urges people to take precautions and get vaccinated against swine flu.

“Those at high risk of complications from pandemic influenza should seek medical attention immediately. Those individuals include pregnant women, people with underlying medical conditions such as diabetes or those with compromised immune systems,” Graham said in his video.

“If you are not part of a high risk group and are have flu-like symptoms, you should isolate yourself from others as much as possible until you are feeling better.”

Graham encourages people to wash their hands and get their flu shots.

The YouTube video is the latest initiative in the provincial government’s public awareness campaign on influenza.

Vaccine expected in coming weeks

The new flu vaccine is supposed to be in New Brunswick in the next few weeks.

Diana Austin will also be among the early wave of people vaccinated against the virus because she has a chronic illness.

Austin has multiple sclerosis and she’s worried about taking the flu vaccine because it contains an adjuvant, a substance used to boost the vaccine’s effectiveness.

She said she is worried that substance could harm her.

“Those of us with MS are advised to even avoid echinacea, which healthy people take all the time because echinacea revs up the immune system,” she said.

However, Dr. Eilish Cleary, the province’s chief medical officer of health, said the adjuvant will not affect Austin’s condition or anyone else who suffers from an autoimmune disease.

“There’s absolutely no evidence to support the fact that it would,” Cleary said.