Vaccine ‘delays’ put second doses on hold
SEVERAL patients expecting to receive their second dose of the Covid vaccine at Derby Arena this week have seen their appointments rearranged.
This is due to a “scheduling problem” which has delayed the delivery of some vaccines to the mass vaccination centre at Pride Park.
Joined Up Care Derbyshire (JUCD) say circumstances beyond the control of the team at the Arena meant they could not be confident the delivery would have arrived in time for some appointments.
A number of patients who were due to receive their second and final dose of the vaccine later this week have therefore seen their appointments delayed by several days.
A spokesman for JUCD, which is an organisation made up of different health agencies across the county, said: “Due to a scheduling problem for vaccine delivery, staff at Derby Arena have had to re-arrange a number of vaccination appointments for people to receive second doses.
“The appointments had been made well in advance for these patients in line with established national timeframes for second dose vaccine administration, and the vaccination teams routinely check that sufficient vaccines are scheduled to be delivered for all bookings.
“In this case, circumstances beyond the control of the team at the Arena meant they could not be confident the delivery would have arrived in time.
“To minimise the disruption for patients, the team decided to act quickly and delay these appointments by several days.
“This delay is unfortunate, but it is a tribute to the professionalism of the vaccination team at Derby Arena that the problem was identified and addressed as quickly as possible.”
Among the local surgeries which has been alerting patients to the supply issue is Melbourne and Chellaston Medical Practice.
The practice posted an update on Facebook on Tuesday afternoon to say that Derby Arena has now managed to confirm a delivery of vaccines for both first and second doses.
But as these will not be available until Saturday, March 27, those booked in for second vaccines today and tomorrow will still be contacted to have their appointments rearranged.
Part of the Facebook post on the Melbourne and Chellaston Medical Practice page reads: “Derby Arena have now managed to confirm a delivery of vaccines for both first and second doses.
“These will not be till March 27 onwards so as per yesterday’s post, patients booked for second vaccines on Thursday/Friday this week will still be contacted to rearrange their appointment.”
An earlier post on the Melbourne and Chellaston Medical Practice website confirmed a delay in the delivery of vaccines to Derby Arena for Thursday and Friday this week.
It read: “We have recently been informed by the Covid Vaccination Hub at the Derby Arena that due to circumstances beyond their control there has been a delay to the delivery of vaccines for Thursday and Friday this week.”
The converted Arena opened its doors as Derbyshire’s largest vaccination site on Thursday, January 7, and has been classified as a mass vaccination centre since January 25.
A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care said: “Vaccines are being distributed fairly across the UK to make sure the most vulnerable people in society are immunised first.
“Some parts of the country have made very significant progress and their vaccination totals are above the average.
“We continue to put more supply into areas that have further to go and the rollout of vaccinations will continue to expand as we work to offer a first vaccine to all over-50s by midApril and deliver second doses on schedule.”