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Original poster

Our friends aged 50+ have had the vaccine - how?

131 replies

OnlyTeaForMe · 05/01/2021 14:16

We have friends, a couple, aged 56/59 who have been very cautious throughout the pandemic, particularly as they have her 87 year old father living with them.

DH met the husband for a walk last week, and as they were leaving their front garden said to my friend (the wife), "don't worry, we'll keep well apart!". Her husband blurted out "oh don't worry, we've had our first jab now!" and his wife shot him a look then apparently said something about it being because they lived with her elderly dad who was at risk.

We know them fairly well, and I'm pretty sure that they wouldn't qualify on the basis of any of their own underlying health conditions, although their ethnicity puts them at slightly higher risk.

Is this the case, do family members of the vulnerable get it at the same time?

OP posts:
whatswithtodaytoday · 05/01/2021 17:19

@jessstan1

They might have had it privately.

Anyway it isn't your business.

No Covid vaccinations are available privately in the UK.
jessstan1 · 05/01/2021 17:19

Correction: I have just read that no vaccine is yet available privately in the UK.

lovelemoncurd · 05/01/2021 17:20

Chris Witty has just reiterated that carers of vulnerable or elderly can access the vaccine- that's why!

dementedma · 05/01/2021 17:22

I'm in Scotland. Mum is 85 and lives alone but not even been given an approximate date yet

Original poster
OnlyTeaForMe · 05/01/2021 17:45

This thread has now gone off in two directions.

Firstly, I don't resent my friends getting vaccinated, but as I said, I am just genuinely curious as to how it came about, and if it was (as they said) related to their relationship to the 87-year-old father then my DH, who is asthmatic, and caring for his own elderly father would like the same opportunity. That's why I was interested in the definition of carer.

Anyone who resents NHS staff getting the vaccine early on in the process needs to take a long hard look at themselves

Thing is, there are 1.5m - 2m NHS workers.
On the subject of every single employee having the same potential to affect the NHS as a whole, I'm afraid that is rubbish. I've worked within the NHS myself (non-clinical) and there are many, many functions which could cope with covid sickness absence without having any impact on hospitals or patient services. Of course vaccines should be 'used up' in clinics, but the planned automatic blanket vaccination of 1000s of staff many levels removed from the frontline suggests they are playing a numbers game, rather than trying to vaccinate the genuinely most vulnerable.

There should be more limited prioritisation. Arguably the bus or tube driver is more important in getting staff to work, or the nursery worker looking after their children. Where do you stop?

Already this afternoon we've seen all the stories coming out about vulnerable 90-year-old Aunt Lucy still waiting for a date for her first jab, while healthy, young NHS staff in less essential and remote NHS offices are complaining about being offered the vaccine!
Anyone who thinks that's a sensible strategy needs to give their head a wobble!

every single vaccination given is a good thing - yes, but every single vaccination given to a more vulnerable person is an even better thing!
(and we're not talking about the using up of vaccines at the end of a shift here. . .)

OP posts:
Original poster
OnlyTeaForMe · 05/01/2021 17:46

@lovelemoncurd

Chris Witty has just reiterated that carers of vulnerable or elderly can access the vaccine- that's why!
Ah, thanks, that's helpful clarification! Do you know if that has to be live-in carers?
OP posts:
JinglingHellsBells · 05/01/2021 17:55

@OnlyTeaForMe The guidance for vaccines says that if the person being cared for would not 'cope' if their carers were unable to look after them, the carer can be vaccinated with them.

JinglingHellsBells · 05/01/2021 17:56

No it doesn't have to be live-in carers.

I know a couple in their 50s who provide transport and care for a parent and they have had the vaccine last week when they took their parents.

Newyearsameoldshite · 05/01/2021 17:57

I work in an acute NHS hospital albeit in a 'back office' job. I don't have direct patient contact. We are all being encouraged to accept the vaccine because

  1. there is a limited usage and they often have doses about to go out of date
  2. we 'back-office' staff often spend long periods of time with clinically facing staff, so by protecting ourselves we are protecting them and therefore the patients
  3. believe it or not, we do actually perform important tasks in the running of hospitals. If I am laid up with COVID then chances are stock will not be ordered, staff will not be paid, decisions about service delivery won't be made and this will directly impact upon patient experience

I expect your friends have been encouraged to take up the vaccine for one or more of the reasons above, but as PPs have said, if you're that curious then just ask them!

CuriousaboutSamphire · 05/01/2021 18:06

My SIL is another who is vaccinated. She is 30, well and works in admin in a care home. She was asked if she wanted the vaccination because of the number of doses per batch exceeded the number of clients and carers. She works rurally so there were some that needed to be used or thrown away. They chose to offer all care home staff and family carers a vaccine too, depending on who could be there at the right time.

It seems to be happening in quite a few places with that specific vaccine.

Eyewhisker · 05/01/2021 18:19

With the Pfizer vaccine, it all has to be used in a few hours or it goes off. It makes sense to use leftover vaccines from more in the vial, or from no-shows to whoever is around rather than to waste them.

This form of rubbernecking and disapproval really brings out the worst in people. The focus should be on as many people as fast as possible.

Jenasaurus · 05/01/2021 18:23

My DS aged 27 has received the vaccine as well, he has asthma so assumed that is why he was offered it, but he said he felt guilty when he had it as all the other people having it were the elderly, (he is a fit young man who runs marathons)

Hobbesmanc · 05/01/2021 18:25

I don't get why anyone wouldn't be pleased to hear that friends had the vaccine. I can't imagine there is some black market scam going on- you really don't seem to have any fondness for your friends.

The hierarchy of priority vaccinations is a framework- not a hard fixed ruling. So of course people in lower tiers will possibly access before others- and NHS staff working in the Vaccination site are more easily mobilised to mop up leftover doses rather than waste them. So Brenda from admin or Baz the security guard might get lucky. But they aren't robbing your granny. Stop judging them.

Milomonster · 05/01/2021 18:29

Key workers - my dad is in the healthcare business (runs care homes) and can have the vaccine.

tinselearedcow · 05/01/2021 18:30

This form of rubbernecking and disapproval really brings out the worst in people. The focus should be on as many people as fast as possible

Indeed. We have benefits bashing threads, furlough bashing threads and it now looks as though vaccine bashing threads are beginning! Time for a MN break for me.

Original poster
OnlyTeaForMe · 05/01/2021 18:31

The focus should be on as many people as fast as possible.

Except that the strategy has always been to vaccinate as many of the most vulnerable and likely to be hospitalised/die as fast as possible . .

Otherwise why not just take huge teams of jabbers into schools and universities if absolute numbers are all that count? Confused

OP posts:
Springquartet · 05/01/2021 18:36

I know someone who has had the vaccine and who are in their 50a. Lots of vaccines were unexpectedly delivered to their GP's surgery and to avoid waste, the surgery called everyone who was around to come and have their vaccine.

JacobReesMogadishu · 05/01/2021 18:37

It’ll be because of their jobs. My nhs trust started vaccinating staff yesterday and as long as you have an ID card you can book a vaccine. Admin staff are definitely booking in.

I’m getting mine done tomorrow.

Original poster
OnlyTeaForMe · 05/01/2021 18:38

@Hobbesmanc

I don't get why anyone wouldn't be pleased to hear that friends had the vaccine. I can't imagine there is some black market scam going on- you really don't seem to have any fondness for your friends.

The hierarchy of priority vaccinations is a framework- not a hard fixed ruling. So of course people in lower tiers will possibly access before others- and NHS staff working in the Vaccination site are more easily mobilised to mop up leftover doses rather than waste them. So Brenda from admin or Baz the security guard might get lucky. But they aren't robbing your granny. Stop judging them.

@Hobbesmanc What are you on about? Confused

Please see:

OnlyTeaForMe Tue 05-Jan-21 14:53:19
I am pleased for them, as I know she was very anxious about catching it and giving it to her dad.

OP posts:
Greycurtainswithdiamonf · 05/01/2021 18:39

Our poor nhs admin staff have spent the last 10 months scared of the frontline clinical staff. I’ve been encouraging them to book a vaccine.

It’s just a matter of time. Everyone that wants a vaccination will have one.

We had to say whether we were patient facing or not when we registered.

MrsFezziwig · 05/01/2021 18:39

I would so much rather anyone available had the vaccine than it was wasted. That’s one fewer person potentially to need an ICU bed and hopefully one fewer person to pass the virus on. I’m sure once the Oxford vaccine gets going there won’t be so much of this last minute stuff happening anyway as it can be stored more easily so they can just move it on to the next day.

You sound jealous and I wasn’t impressed by your throwaway comment about their ethnicity either.

Frazzled2207 · 05/01/2021 18:41

All healthcare staff are in cat 2. Don’t have to be frontline or vulnerable.
Very healthy 38 yo lab technician friend had hers yesterday. She wasn’t prioritised for an appointment but at the end each day they can queue up for unused Pfizer.

ancientgran · 05/01/2021 18:42

I know someone who isn't eligible yet but has had one due to no-shows. She was contacted by a friend of hers who was doing the vaccinations.

I think it's perfectly fair. The more people who are vaccinated the better.

We were told repeatedly by Chris Whitty that it is important that it is given in the JCVI order, I don't see have a friend doing the vaccinations on the list. There are plenty of care home staff and frontline NHS staff who haven't had it and they should definitely come first.

ancientgran · 05/01/2021 18:44

So Brenda from admin or Baz the security guard might get lucky. But they aren't robbing your granny. Stop judging them. My son is a nurse working with covid patients and I judge Brenda and Baz getting it before him, although a bit late now as he has it.

Dyrne · 05/01/2021 18:45

For someone that’s “pleased for them”, you seem to be making a lot of snide remarks about how non-essential you consider their work to be.

It is incredibly unlikely that they’ll have “stolen” a vaccine space from someone. It’s much more likely that there were some going spare at the end of the day and they were offered it. Nothing sketchy about it at all.