Thousands sign petition for more pharmacies to join in
THE campaign to get more pharmacies involved in the UK Covid vaccination programme is gathring pace - with Calderdale leading the way.
Boots in Halifax continues to be at the forefront of the region’s fight against coronavirus by administering the vaccination to people in the town.
The store manager of the pharmacy says the vaccination roll-out has been going well and that patients are happy with the service being provided.
Natasha Eastwood, store manager of Boots in Market Street, added: “Since we launched the new COVID-19 vaccination site last Thursday we have been able to help numerous patients from the local community receive their first vaccine.
“The feedback from patients has been so positive, and being able to support residents from Halifax in this way has been great to see, as helping them is at the heart of everything we do.
“We look forward to welcoming more patients in store over the next few days and weeks, and are thrilled that our pharmacy has been selected to be at the forefront of the nation’s vaccination efforts.”
Just 100 Boots pharmacies could deliver half-a-million doses of the coronavirus vaccine every week, it has been suggested.
Seb James, the managing director Boots UK and Republic of Ireland, said additional sites would be opening in its Huddersfield and Gloucester branches in the coming weeks, with more stores under consideration.
Mr James said: “Pharmacies are extremely well placed to support the rollout of this vaccine quickly and safely, and we stand ready to do much more.”
He estimated that if 100 of the chain’s stores were to become vaccine sites, it could deliver half-a-million doses every week.
As well as Halifax, pharmacists
TITLES ACROSS JPI Media have called for more local pharmacies to play a role in delivery of the vaccine - and thousands of people have signed our petition.
JPI Media’s ‘Shot In The Arm’ campaign calls for everyone to have the ability to get a jab within 10 minutes of their home by using our great pharmacy network.
The campaign is running in the Courier and sister titles including The Yorkshire Post, the Yorkshire Evening Post, and fellow Yorkshire weekly papers with an accompanying petition.
Around 80,000 people have in Edgware, north London, Telford, Widnes, Macclesfield, and Guildford delivered their first doses, with appointments available at 200 more by the end of the month.
NHS Calderdale Clinical Commissioning Group chair Dr Steven Cleasby said: “I’m really pleased that our efforts will now be further boosted by support of Boots. This will help us deliver the first vaccinate those at greatest risk from Covid-19 as quickly as possible.
“Pharmacists are hugely experienced in vaccinating patients and we’re obviously delighted that Halifax has one of the first pharmacies supporting the vaccine rollout. This will help us deliver first vaccinations to people who are at the greatest risk from Covid-19 as quickly as possible.
“We are busy contacting eligible patients but it is likely to take several weeks to cover everyone in the first priority groups so we are asking people to be patient and not to contact their GP practice, pharmacy or other NHS services about an appointment, as they are extremely busy at the moment”. signed our petition so far for more pharmacies to be involved in the vaccine roll-out.
These are some of the reasons why readers believe that getting vaccinations into local pharmacies is the right move for roll-out.
“Nearly everyone lives close to a pharmacy”, says Beverley Yeoman Glover.
“They are more regularly used than hospitals or other medical centres, including GP surgeries.
“It makes sense to use these facilities when they are already being used to dispense flu vaccines, prescriptions, over-thecounter
INOCULATIONS: Members of the public are given their jabs at Boots, Halifax. Above left: Pharmacist Rae Hynes. Above right: Pharmacist and clinical lead Bhavika Mistry, Photos: Will Johnston Photography/Boots/Simon Hulme. medication and they even house methadone clinics in some cases..”
”“I am 79 years old and feel they are not moving fast enough to get the shots done”, said Lesley Fuller.
Meanwhile the fight against coronavirus continues in Calderdale as vaccines continue to be adminstered at Boots pharmacy in Halifax.
An NHS Calderdale CCG spokesperson said: “Despite the weather our Boots team in conjunction with Calderdale Council did a great job managing to keep the Covid Vaccination site open.
“The team have already vaccinated hundreds of Calderdale residents over the age of 80 and frontline health and social care staff ”
Council Leader, Coun Tim Swift said: “The vaccination programme is progressing really well across Calderdale, thanks in no small part to the close partnership approach we have locally.
“The NHS, Council, local businesses and voluntary sector are all working hard in hand to support the historic effort to deliver the biggest vaccination programme in our history.
“There is cause for optimism but it’s also really important that people don’t become complacent because of the news about the vaccine roll-out.
“We all have a responsibility to do all we can to keep everyone as safe as possible in Calderdale. The single most important action we can all take to protect ourselves, our communities, the NHS and save lives is to stay at home. As more of our most vulnerable residents get vaccinated we have great hope about returning to some kind of normality this year.”
* To sign our pharmacy campaign petition please visit http://chng.it/tYfL9n4GB9.