To think that the over 80’s Covid Vaccine is slow to materialise?

[Mincepie5]

I phoned the GP who signposted me to the local health board who signposted me to the GP again. No one seemed to know anything about a vaccination programme. I have emailed the local government and had a reply to thank me for my email that will usually be responded to in 15 days! Anyone in South Wales Aneurin Bevan area know what is going on with regards to this?

[quote Catmads]@DougRossIsTheBoss My dad is lucky that we have the ways and means to get him there. I am deeply concerned that many vulnerable people will not have the vaccine because it is too far and too difficult for them to travel there. That cannot be right, we need to be making it as accessible as possible to as many people as possible asap.
I'm pretty incredulous that this was the best location available. I'm going to raise this tonight with my friend who is a member of both our residents association and rotary club, there are two other GP surgeries close by and I shall be looking to see what their arrangements are.[/quote]
You remember the part where it has to be kept very, very, very cold, right? That will limit the locations where it can be provided.

Once the Oxford vaccine is in production, it will be able to be provided more or less anywhere.

I know its shit but you're being impatient I'm afraid.
No matter what Johnson says it doesn't mean it's ever going to happen to that timescale. My mum is in the over 70's and reckons she'll be lucky if she gets it by Easter.

Catmads there will be a plan B for people who can't get there

They just don't want to publicise it because it will be more difficult and less efficient so they want as many people as possible to get done in the time efficient way before they eg offer home appts.

I guess this centre has been chosen because of being large basically so they can get a lot of people through allowing for the 15min obs time. It may be a centre serving a number of practices (a PCN) so they can pool staffing.

They will not want to do it at the regular surgeries because it will presumably swamp the place and mean they can't do other usual GP work and/ or they don't want all those very vulnerable people to mix with sick people at the GP in a Tier 3 area with high prevalence.

i think it depends to some extend where you are. Hubs are being set up all over the place in hospitals and communities and not all of the population are covered by all of these yet.
I'm surprised that the GP didn't know the plan though .

There are other posters on here who've just taken their elderly relatives to places where they are doing it, without an appointment, and they weren't turned away. If you know where they're doing it near you it might be worth a try.

@Hardbackwriter - I'd be at zero risk of catching Covid from MIL right now - She's seen noone for months! But even if she did start mixing normally, I think there is every reason to believe that the vaccine will prevent people from spreading it. That is how vaccines generally work. It's just that they've not get got firm data on that. It's certainly a risk so small that I'd be prepared to take it as I'm not elderly or high risk myself anyway.

They have lists and are working through them. Each region is doing it differently but there’s only so many they can give each day. In our hospital we worked out that last week we had 440 patients coming through out patients every day but only enough vaccinators and space to do 200 per day. We’re also vaccinating care home staff. Not everyone who comes into hospital who is eligible will get one that day. The primary care hubs will be providing most of the vaccines for over 80s but here they only started today.

They will start with over 80s with long term high risk conditions plus some extras who were in B the right place at the right time as we have to under book so we don’t have a 90 year old turn up to discover their vaccine is cancelled because it became unstable and turned to foam. This means that the last vaccines are drawn up ready but have to be given within 6 hours so at the end of each day we identify highest risk staff who are in at that moment and offer it to them.

It’s massively complex and everyone is doing their best. The Oxford vaccine will be a game changer!

I think if we just had some idea it would be better than nothing. My 93 year old mil in a home since march hasn't had any notification nor my 91 year old dad.

My parents in their 80s were vaccinated today.

Mum and Dad 83 Southend had it today All very pleasant and efficient apparently

My friend’s dad - in his 80’s - had his Covid vaccine earlier this week.

And according to my next door neighbour, my GP surgery has been ringing around local elderly people and asking if they want to be on the vaccine list once stocks are in, so hopefully it’ll start to be rolled out round here soon.

But I do think we need to be patient. It’s not even a fortnight since the first person was vaccinated.

It’s interesting to hear of everyone else’s experience around the country. I was just hoping for confirmation of a plan for my Dad’s Aneurin Bevan Health Board as I feel a bit fobbed off by the GP and surprised that no one at the health board was able to help with my enquiry except to advise me to contact the Welsh Government. I’d like to be able to reassure my Dad. I think we’ll just have to focus on the impending Oxford vaccine.

The vaccination programme started this Tuesday, I think you are being exceptionally unreasonable to not realise how big and complex this is and it might take some time to contact everyone eligible to get one (which depends on the supply too)!!

@MrsZola

My 89 year old father is having his forst vaccine dose this Saturday and the 2nd dose 9th January. He was phoned by whichever department is organising it round here. They seem to have designated some surgeries as vaccination hubs.

Same, my dad is 88.

@Catmads it isn’t feasible to do it at every surgery, they have to have hubs. Why can’t he get a taxi if there’s no one to take him? My dad has to go to a community centre and it’s a bit too far for his mobility scooter so I’m masking up and taking him.

Last Tuesday sorry. Wrong word used but we are still only days in to what will be one of the largest campaigns with a vaccine with a tricky cold chain.

None going on where I work (care home in Somerset)

I don't know many over 80s to say whether they have been contacted but a nearby leisure centre, which was converted to an overflow hospital, has now started vaccinating. North Wales.

@Littlewhingeing

For goodness sake, stop moaning! Its been 2 weeks. The vaccine is being rolled to to priority cases first. I work for the NHS as the effort that is going into getting this vaccine rolled out is extraordinary - yet all people can do is moan. Care homes are priority, so just being over 80 doesnt automatically entitle someone to a vaccine immediately

Exactly this! NHS staff are working so hard to get this out, working extra hours, staff spread thinner so the everyday workload is heavier and all people can do is moan! Our local hospital is underway doing care home and hospital patients and staff, GPs in our area start on 28th or 29th doing over 80s in the community and my mother (89) got hers this week in another area. Yes, there are still many more who have not got them but it's unreasonable to be complaining so soon

I know 2 unrelated people over 80 who got it this week in different parts of London. One at the hospital, as he is having regular in-patient treatment, the other via the GP at a nearby civic centre.

No vaccine yet for my dad or PILs (all over 80).

Like others have said, it's not just the number of vaccines available, it's the huge logistical challenge of getting clinics, social distance and the observation time.

Look how long it take for the flu vaccination season to be done, and many surgeries allocate 2-3 minutes per person maximum, like a production line.

With this new vaccine, you need observation time plus to time it exactly so no vaccine doses are wasted after mixing / defrosting. There won't be a 500 patients in 4 hours clinic like there was with the flu vaccine.

I think the government chat about it made it sound like it would start and every one would be vaccinated quickly. In fact, the same NHS staff who are doing all the other essential nhs services are just ending up spread more thin, with the additional pressure of trying to get people vaccinated.

I'm not moaning just confused why care homes here in herts are still waiting and other parts of the country seem to be sorted.

I was just hoping for confirmation of a plan for my Dad’s Aneurin Bevan Health Board as I feel a bit fobbed off by the GP and surprised that no one at the health board was able to help with my enquiry except to advise me to contact the Welsh Government.

You can’t blame them for you feeling fobbed off when you’re expecting something that it’s impossible for them to give you. They can’t ‘just’ give you confirmation if the information you want is still with the Welsh Government. What else would you expect them to say?

@Catmads

My dad is 85 and has underlying health conditions, he has shielded throughout and is continuing to do so. We are in London, Tier 3.

According to my GP's website, they started vaccination clinics yesterday but they are not doing it at the surgery, it is at a church hall location that will take two bus journeys and a not insignificant walk to get to.

I'm disappointed tbh, this is a large surgery that offers many services including minor surgery, diabetic clinic, respiratory clinic and on site blood tests. It also has a large amount of elderly patients that are going to find it very difficult, if not impossible to make this journey given the current Tier 3 status and the fact that these are people who are being offered the vaccine for the sole purpose of PROTECTING THEM!

The surgeries arent in charge, they are grouped together to coordinate it and the staff are going to designated vaccination hubs (which might me a surgery but not necessarily your own) where people from several different catchments are being sent to. This first vaccine has to be kept in very cold storage until use and because of this they can't split the batch to send to various different places so it's all in one place.

Re the Prue Leiths and the Ian McKellens of the world, they're getting it because they are in a priority group like others of their age and because they are willing to publicise it to help inspire confidence in the vaccine (which is important). It's not like they're skipping the queue though.

They did say care homes would be first and they're not.