It’s here... Covid jab arrives in Sligo
● First vaccination was administered yesterday as hospital staff get priority ● st Patrick’s day parade is now OFF while access to amenities is restricted by the council as infection rate jumps
THE first vaccinations against Covid-19 in Sligo took place yesterday, Wednesday, with staff at Sligo University Hospital the first to get the long-awaited jab. The first doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine arrived at the hospital yesterday and the first person in Sligo were vaccinated yesterday afternoon. Hospital manager Gráinne McCann said everyone was delighted to see the commencement of this vaccination programme.
“Over the coming days and weeks we will be rolling out the vaccine across the entire hospital. After a really difficult year we are delighted that this vital vaccination programme has begun here in Sligo University Hospital.” Director of Nursing Marion Ryder, whose team is delivering the Covid-19 vaccine across the hospital said: “2020 has been a very difficult year for everyone including health care staff. Today is a really positive day.”
Vaccinations in nursing homes in Sligo are due to commence on Monday week.
The first home in the county where residents and staff will receive vaccinations will be Bailey’s Nursing Home in Tubbercurry on January 18.
That will be followed by Ballymote Community Nursing Unit, January 19; Mowlam Nursing Home Sligo, January 20; Nazareth House Nursing Home Sligo, January 22; Summerville Nursing Home Strandhill, January 26; St John’s Community Hospital Sligo, January 27 and Sonas Nursing Home Ard Na Greine, Enniscrone, January 29.
The positive news on vaccinations beginning here comes as the surge in Covid-19 cases in Sligo, with almost 450 cases in the county in the past two weeks, is beginning to impact on Sligo University Hospital.
The number of Covid patients in the hospital has jumped from just three a week ago to 11 on Tuesday night, and, more worryingly, three of those patients are in the critical care unit, which was at full capacity.
The number of Covid cases now in the local hospital are as high if not higher than at any stage of the pandemic and the number in ICU is the highest there has been.
And there is real concern that the numbers will increase in the coming days
The hospital is deferring all but very urgent and time critical inpatient and day surgery to help manage the increase in the number of Covid-19 cases.
The deferrals began on Tuesday and will be for a two-week period initially but will be kept under review.
Outpatient clinics will also be cancelled, however some of these will take place virtually unless it is absolutely necessary for patients to be seen. A statement from the hospital said that these measures are being taken “to help the hospital manage the increase in the number of Covid-19 cases currently being treated in the hospital and the rising numbers in the community which are likely to lead to further hospitalisations”. Gráinne McCann said: “We regret the impact that these deferrals will have on our patients but it is a really important part of maintaining critical and emergency services. “A small number of urgent cancer and time-critical inpatient and day case procedures will proceed. We are notifying patients directly if their appointment or procedure is being deferred.
“We ask patients who are attending the hospital for a procedure to continue to follow all the public health guidance including wearing a face mask. “We also remind patients to attend the hospital alone, unless the support of another person is essential.”
She also reminded people that visiting restrictions remain in place at the hospital. She said: “People should not visit the hospital except on compassionate grounds and these visits should be arranged in advance with the nurse manager on the ward” Ms McCann said that the hospital “continues to be extremely busy and we would also like to remind the public that we encourage them to attend the Emergency Department only in the case of emergencies”.
She said: “If your health problem is not an emergency you should contact your GP during normal surgery hours or the NoWDOC GP out of hours service, in the first instance.”