County now has 11 hubs delivering jabs to patients
THERE are now 11 confirmed Covid19 vaccine hubs in Nottinghamshire as the NHS rollout of jabs continues.
The latest vaccination service opened on Saturday at Newark Showground.
Among the first to receive a vaccination at the new site were ex-veterans Tony Parker, 81, and his wife Beryl, 82, who both live in Newark.
Having met each other in Singapore while serving for the RAF, the Parkers have been married for more than 60 years and have spent most of the pandemic shielding together.
Mr Parker said: “We are pleased to be receiving the vaccination and are looking forward to being able to see our family safely again. Spending time with them is what it’s all about.”
Nottingham and Nottinghamshire’s NHS Clinical Commissioning Group is asking for residents to wait until they have received a letter before contacting the NHS, their GP or local hospital.
It says all residents over 80 should have received a letter by today.
Once residents have received a letter, they are advised to book an appointment as soon as possible.
Recipients of the vaccine will be called forward in priority order as set out by the Joint Committee for Vaccination and Immunisation.
First priority at the sites is for those over the age of 80 and frontline health and social care workers.
Dr Thilan Bartholomeuz, GP and clinical lead for the Mid-nottinghamshire Integrated Care Partnership, said: “The roll-out of the Covid-19 vaccination programme is a huge task and a tremendous amount of work is going into it at a local and national level.
“The opening of the local vaccination service in Newark is another significant step in the process.
“It’s really important we continue to prioritise those most at risk first and soon all of those over the age of 80 across our city and county will have received a letter inviting them for a Covid-19 vaccine.
“In the meantime, the advice remains the same.
“Please be patient and protect the NHS by following the guidance in place to help control the virus and save lives.
“When you do receive a letter from the NHS inviting you for a vaccine, please make your appointment as quickly as possible.”
Hus comments come as Labour MP for Nottingham South, Lilian Greenwood, said the plan for at-home vaccinations in the county haqd been discussed in an MPS’ briefing.
She added: “The roving teams doing care homes also pick up the housebound and they told us 5,000 over-80s in that category.”
A spokesperson for NHS Nottingham and Nottinghamshire confirmed: “We will be in touch with people who are housebound over the next two weeks about arranging a Covid-19 vaccination.
“Our dedicated ‘roving team’ will be working with teams already supporting housebound residents to coordinate delivering the vaccinations.
“Our roving team are making good progress and we are on track to vaccinate all residents in the top four JCVI cohorts by mid-february”
These are the 11 locations across Nottinghamshire where confirmed vaccine hubs are now up and running: Hospital hubs:
Queen’s Medical Centre, Nottingham; King’s Mill Hospital, Sutton-inashfield; City Hospital, Nottingham; Retford Hospital.
Local vaccination centres: Ashfield Health Village, Kirkby-in-ashfield; Richard Herrod Centre, Carlton; Gamston Community Hall, Cripps Medical Centre, Nottingham; King’s Meadow Campus, Nottingham; Newark Showground; Larwood Surgery, Worksop.
The roll-out of the vaccination is a huge task and a tremendous amount of work is going into it
Dr Thilan Bartholomeuz