‘Stubborn unvaccinated cohort’ still to be jabbed
Health chiefs stressed they are doing “all that they can and beyond” to vaccinate residents in Sunderland to help tackle Covid-19.
There remain 42,000 residents in the city who are yet to receive any vaccine, the Sunderland Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) Governing Body heard this week.
However 83% of those eligible have received their first vaccination dose, equating to 209,000 residents, while 191,000 have received a second dose.
Medical bosses said the figures are in the “upper tier of performance”, but stressed they are continuing to urge those not yet vaccinated to do so.
Tracey Teasdale, of the Sunderland GP Alliance, said it is “definitely not too late” for those not yet vaccinated.
She said: “We are doing incredibly well, but we still have about 42,000 people in our city who have never taken up the opportunity to have a vaccine.
“We want to encourage and reach out to as many of those patients who have never taken up the opportunity of a vaccine to encourage them to come forward and be vaccinated.
“We are trying to leave no stone unturned and we’re really outwardly looking to try to understand what other parts of the country are doing to target these people as well.”
However she conceded
they are now likely facing a “stubborn unvaccinated cohort” and they need to work “smartly as well as hard” to find out what has stopped those people engaging.
Young males were highlighted as being a particular problem group in terms of vaccination take-up, the meeting heard.
Chris Macklin, vice chair of the governing body, issued a plea for residents in Sunderland to continue to come forward to receive their vaccinations.
He said: “We’ve tried to be ahead of the curve, and when you look at our percentage rates, we are very much up there in that upper tier of performance.
“Those 42,000, if anyone has any concerns, there are people within the city who would be happy to answer any concerns anyone would have.
“In Sunderland we are doing all that we can and going beyond to try and maximise our supply and then maximise the uptake.”