To propose that vets and dentists should vaccinate people right now?

[Destinysdaughter]

I saw this on Twitter, a vet saying he'd be willing to administer the Covid vaccine and someone else said why not dentist too? May be a bit leftfield, but with cases rising at an alarming rate, why not? I'm sure with a bit of training, these professions could be ideal to help accelerate the vaccination process?

What reason do you have for thinking they haven't already been applying? The volunteer programme is open to almost anyone I believe.

They’ve already been approached.

Agree.

Also related professions like physiotherapists, health visitors, opticians, radiographers, dieticians, paramedics, students of medicine/midwifery/nursing.

If it were taking blood samples or something you need to have more training. But giving an injection into a muscle is very straightforward.

Definitely agree, my vet can inject my very wriggly cat successfully so I'm more than happy for them to do human injections!

Anyone can apply for a job as a vaccinator. Even non hcps I’ve just realised.
Yes the dentists and vets are very much on the case though judging from some threads on here about the topic they’re coming up against a barrage of red tape unless they’ve recently passed a “recognising terrorists” course

The BBC reported a bit on it yesterday
www.bbc.com/news/uk-55516277 which has unfortunately probably put a few off rather than encouraged more volunteers!

Bear in mind though that all these people have important other jobs to do. Perhaps they will be in a position to help out for a few hours a week but someone will need to do their jobs too.

A friend of mines a vet, she was asked early on if she wanted to be trained to ventilate people.

I think they will be vaccinating us.

Never mind the vet, I'd let the vets patients vaccinate me.
I'd be happy to do it myself.

It’s about not having enough vaccines at the moment.

I find it surprising that my retired nurse aunt has offered and not been replied to yet. Surely this is exactly the sort of person they need?

Relieved pp didn't think I was bonkers! Yes I've read about the stupid red tape required
( fire safety and Prevent training, assuming that this is true ).

This is the tweet I saw about this. I really don't think it's a bad idea, but didn't know pp had already been approached about it?

@SonEtLumiere

Do the have enough doses of vaccine to give out at the moment to need the use of vets/their patients/the man off the street?

Not yet, but it makes sense to get volunteers lined up now so that vaccines can be distributed quickly once they do start rolling in in bulk.

What, like this week? You know they actually need the vaccine to do this, right? They can't just get some via deliveroo.

I have applied to join the Covid-19 Vaccination Programme as a Vaccinator. So far my application has been online. I completed a questionairre. I have had a short video/online interview where I was asked questions and submitted a recording of my answers. I was then sent some online training to do. Each topic required proof of the training in the form of a certificate. I had to email the certificates back in PDF form, there were 18 in total.
I have had to submit 3 different forms of ID. I have had to provide the names and contact details of 4 referees. I have submitted information and given consent for a CRB check, a bankruptcy check and a check of my social media history. I have had to submit my photograph holding my ID.
Not sure what the next stage will be ........

Pharmacists, paramedics and many others have already been enrolled.
I have to say the training is ridiculous, half is incredibly basic and half irrelevant. I'm not sure we need to know how to spot and deal with people being groomed into terrorism for the minimal contact vaccination will have but what do I know? NHS management obviously want all those boxes ticked

Does anyone have a link where you volunteer?

I didn't vote for Brexit but wasn't part of the point of it to remove so called red tape? FFS, if this Gvt can't remove the red tape for an actual emergency then what was the point of it all?

Injections into muscle are extremely easy to administer.

My midwife just told me, watched me do one and then sent me home with a load of syringes.

Pretty much anyone could do it with half an hour training.

Having looked at the list of training certificates to be provided, I could see the point for most of them but certainly not all. Unfortunately in this day and age of people trying to sue for anything, I can see why the govt has to be very careful.

Why waste dentists and vets? Anyone can sign up to do it.

The list of Professions that NHS England wanted to recruit initially is quite long, approx 15. Doctors, Nurses, Physiotherapists etc. Conspicuous by their absence from the list were Midwives. NHS England has sadly excluded approx 33,000 professionals who regularly give injections.

Omg @165EatonPlace
It's so bloomin hard just to help these days!! In the end no one will help anyone.

My DH is a pharmacist and qualified to administer vaccines such as flu, meningitis etc with regular and up to date refresher training and he offered one day a week (one of his days off per week) but some of the additional training he just doesn’t have the time to do such as the fire training and radicalisation training.
They would be able to roll this out so much quicker if there wasn’t so much red tape.

I assume the evidence of training is required because it’s a paid role and those are mandatory units for NHS employees? Would it be different if it was voluntary?