WE CAN SPEED UP ROLLOUT, SAY GPs

Doctors criticise ‘frustrating’ and ‘convoluted’ jab supply issues

FAMILY doctors have demanded more control over Covid vaccine supplies so they can be rolled out faster.

Concerns are growing about delays to doses of the jabs reaching GP surgeries, which are mainly responsible for vaccinating those over the age of 80.

The British Medical Association (BMA) has formally requested for the process to be streamlined by removing ‘unnecessary layers’.

Doctors in Nicola Sturgeon’s own constituency were among those to raise concerns about delays with supplies.

Deputy First Minister John Swinney yesterday defended the current approach but pledged to consider the demands of GPs.

Currently, GPs place orders for vaccines with health boards. They pass the request to NHS Scotland’s procurement service, which then uses logistics firm Movianto.

But this has led to claims that there is much more ‘central command’ of the approach than in England, and it is slowing down the system.

The BMA has asked Professor Alison Strath, the interim chief pharmaceutical officer, to consider reforming the process so doctors can bypass health boards when ordering vaccines.

Dr Andrew Buist, chairman of the BMA’s Scottish GP’s committee, told the Daily Telegraph: ‘We need to look at that process to make it quicker. We should cut out unnecessary layers and steps.’

Concerns were raised about the supplies within Miss Sturgeon’s Glasgow Southside constituency yesterday.

John Montgomery, chairman of the South Glasgow GP committee, told BBC Radio Scotland: ‘It’s been very frustrating in general practice. This is something that is quite clearly a national priority.

‘General practice, GPs and our teams can move very, very efficiently as soon as the vaccine is in their fridges, and it’s a little frustrating that we’re having to go through quite a convoluted procurement process to get that vaccine into our fridges.’

He said one of the problems has been caused by a decision to take control over vaccinations away from GPs in 2018.

He added: ‘We only found out just before Christmas that we were able to, in a sense, bid to do our over-80s cohort. And only a few days ago were we told we were able to provide Covid vaccinations for the 75 to 79-year-olds and particularly in areas like Govan, where I work, for our large numbers of shielded patients. So, we only found that out two days ago.’

Asked if he could vaccinate his patients more quickly if he had control over his vaccine supply, he said: ‘Very much so.’

Pressed on what changes the Government should make, he said: ‘Allow us to basically order directly.

‘Although our practice has done our over-80s, there are many other practices from south Glasgow who are still waiting on their first supply of the vaccine. So being able to order directly, and having that supply coming out in a uniform way because it’s not fair for some patients that are getting the vaccine ahead of others in the very same priority groups.’

Official figures showed that 24,962 first doses of the coronavirus vaccines were administered in Scotland on Wednesday, bringing the total figure to 334,871.

Mr Swinney said he is ‘very confident on the basis of the existing commitments to supply that we have’ that all over-80s would be vaccinated by the end of the first week in February.

He denied there is a ‘bottleneck’ affecting supplies.

Mr Swinney said: ‘Not all of the supplies allocated to Scotland are yet available. Quite a large proportion of the supplies will be available towards the end of January.’

Professor Jason Leitch, the national clinical director, said you ‘have to have a level of control’ to distribution, with England using clinical commissioning groups, or large networks of GPs.

‘Bottleneck affecting supply’