Pharmacies step up in lockdown to help keep you safe and healthy
AS the New Year has brought with it a further lockdown, I wanted to remind everyone that community pharmacies remain open to offer healthcare and medicines advice.
We are still working with GP practices to ensure medicines are dispensed on time and to provide health advice on minor illnesses and injuries.
If you are visiting one of our community pharmacies, don’t forget to wear a mask and stay two metres away from staff and other customers.
Hand sanitiser is also available in most of our pharmacies and so please make use of this. We want to make sure everyone stays safe, including our staff.
Many of our community pharmacists also give the flu vaccination.
Uptake this year has been amazing – so far our pharmacy-based vaccinators have delivered 40,000 jabs this season.
If you have not yet taken up the offer of a vaccine, and are eligible to do so, you can still do this either through the pharmacy or GP practices.
You can check if you are eligible for a free vaccination at www.nhs.uk/conditions/ vaccinations/flu-influenzavaccine
And while Covid-19 continues to dominate our lives, more people than ever are taking responsibility for their own health and wellbeing.
With January traditionally being the time for fresh starts, new goals and resolutions, now is a good time to look at your own lifestyle and see where you can make changes to improve or support your own health.
As we are all currently allowed to exercise outside once a day, why not wrap up and go for a walk or out on your bike?
You could even start running using the NHS Couch to 5k app. This programme is aimed at getting complete beginners from walking to running for 30 minutes nonstop.
Getting physically active every day is one of the many ways the NHS is encouraging people to improve their own health.
There are more ideas, apps, support and information on how you can do this at www.nhs.uk/livewell/exercise
And finally, returning briefly to Covid-19, Community Pharmacy Derbyshire is delighted to see that in addition to the Pfizer vaccine, the Astra-zeneca vaccine is now available to the top priority groups of over 80s and care home residents and staff. The challenging ambition of the government and the NHS is to vaccinate the first four priority groups by the middle of February and then the other priority groups by the end of March.
Our community pharmacists are ready, willing and able to support the roll-out of the vaccines in Derby and Derbyshire. As soon as further details are confirmed, we will be letting our communities know. Until then, stay safe.
It’s a good time to address your lifestyle... wrap up and get walking... and even running for fitness