Holiday coach turned into mobile jag unit
A holiday coach has been converted into a mobile Covid-19 vaccination unit run by the Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS).
The coach, which was offered free of charge by Lochs and Glens Holidays of Gartocharn, is expected to deliver vaccines to 400 people in remote and rural Tayside this week, operating out of Stanley, Perthshire.
An Ambulance Service car staffed by a SAS trained vaccinator has also been visiting housebound patients’ homes in rural Perthshire to vaccinate them.
First doses of the Astrazeneca vaccine have been delivered to clinically vulnerable patients and those aged 70 to 79.
It comes as 742,512 people in Scotland have been given a first dose of a Covid-19 vaccine in Scotland.
The pilot coach and car initiative will be developed by the SAS and Scottish Government and rolled out to other health boards in due course. Appointments are booked with GP practices.
Mobile vaccination units are a key aspect of the Scottish Government’s rollout to more rural areas.
Scottish Ambulance Service Medical director Jim Ward said: “This is a great initiative in the fight against Covid-19. We have already vaccinated more than 5,000 of our own staff, Community First Responders and students, which has been a fantastic effort by everyone involved.
“The bus is essentially a mobile vaccination clinic that can access remote and rural Scotland, providing a sheltered place."