Clinically vulnerable and over-75s in line for jabs

CORONAVIRUS vaccines will be given to the clinically vulnerable this week, as well as over-75s, say local health chiefs, as more batches of the Astrazeneca jab arrive in the Derbyshire Dales.

The Oxford vaccine, which has less complex storage and transport requirements than the delicate Phizer/biontech jab, can be delivered to housebound clients by nurses from clinics and GP surgeries, rather than having to be administered at a central hub. More of the Oxford vaccine is due to arrive tomorrow, according to Dr Penny Blackwell of Hannage Brook Medical Centre.

And she says the focus now will be on sending out jabs from practices, rather than calling people to St Oswald’s Hospital.

This will mean the remainder of the over-75s in the area can be vaccinated, as well as starting on the clinically extremely vulnerable people.

Practices will also be “mopping up” people in higher-priority brackets that have not yet been vaccinated, she said.

Dr Blackwell has also urged people to wait their turn, rather than asking for vaccines. She said: “We completely understand that people are desperate for us to vaccinate them, but it really doesn’t help if you drop letters into us individually asking us to prioritise you, and also coming to the front door.

“If you haven’t got an appointment, please do not ask us to vaccinate you as well, it just makes a really difficult job all the more emotive for our staff, because of course we want to vaccinate everybody or as many people as we can, but we simply can’t, we’ve got to allow that fair allocation.”

The surgeries, she added, are currently following national guidance over second vaccine doses, and adhering to the Government’s policy to deliver the follow-ups at the 11week point.