Getting a second dose of AZ earlier than 12 weeks.

[vera99]

I understand that the national protocol for the AZ jab recommends a minimum of 28 days for the second dose whilst the established practice is 12 weeks in order to maximize the population that have at least one dose. My second dose is scheduled for 7th July and online there is no leeway for modifying the appointment. You need to cancel the appointment and then take your (unknown) chances of getting a second appointment. Has anyone had any experience of shortening the period - would ringing them up help?

The reason for us wanting to change the dates is that a family event has arisen on that date and I would rather get jabbed earlier if at all possible. If so would be happier having say a 6 week gap rather than the 12.

I’m interested in this too. I’m going ring GP tomorrow. My second jab is in two and a half weeks but my dad is really sick in Ireland and I’m in UK. I’d like to get my second jab early so I can travel ASAP to see him.

I had my 2nd one 10½ weeks after the 1st.

Unfortunately the online system only asks you to cancel your existing booking before you can see what is available to book, so you take a risk of not being able to get an earlier appointment. If your vaccine centre is nearby you could pop in and ask them if they have any spares that you could have early.

@Mindymomo Thanks for that I was aware. I suspect the system has been designed to make it difficult to change bookings for practical and operational reasons. The uncertainty is what is making me reluctant to go down the cancel/rebook route. Does anybody know if the GPs have a back door to the system and if so would it be worth firing off an e-consult to them to see if they can help?

Well GP keep texting me to book in my second but it would have only been 9 weeks.
My second is booked for the 11th week elsewhere. I will book in with my doctors for the 11th week and cancel my other appointment.

If you read the guidance online they don't actually recommend you do it early only in extreme circumstances.

You can only have it earlier if you have a proper need for it, otherwise it’s just when the system allows around 11-12 weeks. There are still lots waiting for their first jab, I really don’t think you’ll be able to skip the queue to get. Your second one early just because of a family event. You would be able to change to another date around the same timeframe though if you can’t make that date now.

My gap was 9.5 weeks, told it was ok. What I was given as done group 6 and booked through Gp hub.

They were ahead and was asked to do that gap, not my choice I should add.

I had my 2nd 9 weeks after 1st.

If you can move it forward, you’d be bumping someone’s first jab, which feels a bit off.

Thanks for all the replies it looks like leaving it alone is the right thing to do from a practical point of view and not to try to 'game' the system for a personal reason. Particularly so when so many are waiting for their first jabs.

The NHS National Protocol for AZ though suggests a window for the second does from 8 - 12 weeks.

www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-protocol-for-covid-19-vaccine-astrazeneca-chadox1-s-recombinant

Published data indicate that the booster response to the second dose of COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca improves as the interval between doses increases. Given these data,JCVInow advise that the second dose of COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca should be given between 8 and 12 weeks after the first dose.

Everyone I know who had a GP booked vaccine has been called for their second earlier than the 12 weeks. But everyone = like me= who bòoked on line has the 12 week interval.

A friend of mine was able to do this by speaking to her GP, as she was moving overseas and obviously needed the second dose before she went. She was in group 6 though so it was all done through her GP in the first place - not sure how easy it would be if your first dose was booked through the central system. Could be worth calling the surgery to ask though?

X post, sorry!

I imagine they might start bringing them forward a bit once first jabs are done, but not much for AZ as it doesn't work as well.

If you go on 35-39s thread, you will see loads of people (including me) still really wanting their first jab but not able to book yet. I don't see how it could be fair to bring forward peoples 2nd ones.

I think I read the efficacy is improved if the second jab is at 12 weeks as opposed to 6 weeks in recent trials. In my area the second jab is offered 11 weeks after the first, presumably to allow for some people having to change their appointments and still complete in the 12 week window.

Its worth remembering that it is suspected that an even longer gap may give even better results. Certainly a week or two isnt going to make a massive difference.

@motherofcrocodiles(sounds painful!) I've had a glance at that thread and as you say it would be morally wrong to try to exploit a not-so-pressing personal need to change our bookings. I shall let it lie and count my blessings.

I think some areas were offering the second jab earlier if they had spare doses or no shows. If you were 8 weeks post first jab you could potentially get your second jab earlier than twelve weeks if you were prepared to be called at short notice.

[quote vera99]@motherofcrocodiles(sounds painful!) I've had a glance at that thread and as you say it would be morally wrong to try to exploit a not-so-pressing personal need to change our bookings. I shall let it lie and count my blessings.[/quote]
Ask your local site in early June to be put on a list for spares; first doses for everyone 30+ or who can't have mRNA are likely to be done in May, so moving your second dose into June shouldn't affect anybody else and may even be helpful for them by that point.

My second dose was given 9 weeks to the day after my first. On each occasion I received a text from my GP’s Surgery telling me I could book it and I responded the same day.

I don’t know how precisely calculated the number of doses are for each day. I suppose there might be spares sometimes depending on whether or not there are any no-shows.

My DH and both my brother's had their second at less than 8 weeks after the first.

Do you have a pharmacy doing COVID jabs near you? If so it is worth popping in and explaining to the pharmacist. We did a few drop ins yesterday where people had a good reason - eg travelling and the quarantine taking them over the 12 weeks and were already at 8 weeks or thereabouts from their first jab. One reason we were relaxed about it was that loads of people didn't show up and when we phoned them said they had already been jabbed by their GP. If the situation is similar where you are then you won't be depriving anyone for the first jab as the vaccine had already been allocated to the pharmacy for a second jab. Also GPs seem desperate to be the ones jabbing their patients (do they get paid per jab?) so your GP surgery might also be happy to give it to you.

@MRex

“Ask your local site in early June to be put on a list for spares”

How do you do that? Would you literally turn up and ask? Because I can’t find telephone numbers or email addresses for the hubs where I live (only the GP practices that I know are giving it out and only one responded to me to say they don’t operate a reserve list).

I don’t want to push in front of anyone in the queue but I’d be grateful for a leftover one for my second dose which might save me a very long drive.

That'll depend on the place. My local it's their normal number (and a grumpy response that they had their lists all filled for months when we were asking to go on a list for spares earlier in the year, but that's a different situation than June).