Why not make booster availability as easy as vaccine availability?

[BigButtons]

Where I am SE England the vaccine rollout was excellent. It was easily accessible and very efficient with loads of local centres.
I have been trying to book my booster and am being asked to now travel over an hour away. I’d they want people to take the booster jabs why are they not making it easier to do so?
Is it the same everywhere else? Even walk in centres are reducing in number. I don’t get it.
I want to get my booster but it’s nigh on impossible to find a space.

There's also individual perceptions. If there's queue and you apologise for the wait, the majority of people are totally understanding, and say how lucky we are to be offered the vaccine anyway.

But then you get the odd entitled idiot - one woman came in a couple of weeks ago and ranted about having to wait - there were 12 people infront of her, and she was at the head of the queue within 5 minutes. But that wasn't good enough.

Having the same problems trying to book my booster too.
It must be down to location as my friend in the next county had her booster at her local pharmacy whereas I'm being told the nearest place is 25 miles away. Quite annoying considering my first 2 jabs were at a local medical centre arranged by my GP practice & we have a massive walk in centre only a few miles away yet it's not offering booster jabs.

I've had a similar problem getting DDs second jab. She is 17 so had her first in August, but approval for the second only given a few weeks ago. She was keen to get it done ASAP, but booking wasn't possible for 16-17yos straight away - had to be walk-in. Two places locally - both open 8.30 - 3pm. That works so well for school kids!! We're in South London where you would think there would be plenty of provision.

Finally went to a walk-in on Saturday, and so pleased I went with her as the number of times she was told she couldn't have it by staff there was amazing. 3 separate people said no - I had to argue each time. She would've just come home again. One of friends was turned away later in the day, but she didn't like to argue.

I moaned about this weeks ago when I got my booster invitation letter. I had just had a flu jab in a local village hall but was being offered CV boosters a fifty mile round trip away.

I waited hoping something closer would turn up. I eventually compromised at 30 miles, but now three weeks later than I could have had it originally.

It would also be helpful if the powers that be told the people who are behind the scenes organising clinics,staff, supply etc when guidance is going to change before announcing it to the public so they can start to put things in place for an increase of demand. Instead we tend to find out as its being announced on the news, then we get a flurry of very angry patients annoyed we can't offer them the vaccine that 10 minutes ago Boris said they was entitled to and have been encouraged to get. I wish people gave more consideration to people behind the scenes who make this vaccine roll out actually happen instead of moaning and criticising it all the time. I can assure you people are working flat out to try to deliver it as quickly and safely as possible

I suppose someone will come on and say how grateful we should be to get a booster and should be willing to travel miles to get one, even if we haven't got a car and should get several buses or pay for a taxi. This is usually said by someone who has got one from down the road...

My local centre offering them is a 20-minute journey by car, but as I don’t drive, it would be 1hr on two buses followed by a mile walk crossing two crossing-less A-roads and navigating through an industrial estate on foot. Not massively tempting! I’m waiting to see if more appointments open up at another one which I could at least get to on my bike in under an hour. Nowhere closer is doing them.

I don’t at all blame the staff for poor booster availability, it must be a total resource nightmare trying to organise this, but I wish there was a bit more of a proactive funding push in place by government(s, I’m in Scotland) to make that nightmare easier for the health boards to manage.

As pp have said, we are in a very different time to when the initial vaccine was rolled out. My original vaccination centre has been returned to it's original use and the only building we could get hold of has half the capacity not only for vaccinators but also parking. Initially we had all the school nurses and the immunisation teams but they are back at their actual jobs now as well as people who were leant out to us for a couple of days a week from their main jobs. We've gone from running 10 lanes of vaccinators to 5/6 max.

We've worked hard and trained up a small army of non nursing vaccinators as well, it's not as though they didn't see this coming, but with theatres and sports halls going back to pre pandemic uses there just aren't the spaces to carry on as we did 12 months ago. It's so frustrating!

I've been trying online for weeks to get an appointment. Occasionally they come up for miles away at times I can't go. Usually though there's nothing at all. Frustrating.

And what Wellbythebloodyhell said! ( We found out that everyone over 50 had been told to walk in for a booster when the line of cars outside stretched to the far horizon and we started getting abuse from people for the waiting times, thanks guys on the comms).

They obviously don’t have enough vaccine at present. Id they did they’d be offering it to everyone.

Shame the government decided to cancel that massive order of vaccine from France. Bet that wasn’t at all politically motivated 😢

It varies depending where you are. Here it was easier than original vaccine as they allowed group so. To book directly or use walk in rather than relying on the limited GP service we had to use before.

I was due mine on the 20th, had a text from my GP on the 15th, was booked in for the 25th and had my booster and flu jab in one go - and was there for 20 minutes inc 15 minutes waiting time. Absolutely no complaint here and we are in a very small town

There's been a lot of complaints about it round here too. For the first and second jabs there was a big centre right in the city centre with lots of buses nearby and a couple of others within the city. Now most of the centres are well out of town and really quite hard to get to by public transport - the main one wasn't even on a bus route until they diverted a couple of services to it and for most people getting one of those will mean a second bus.

South Easr here, I got a text and could easily book
A slot a few miles from where I live.

They obviously don’t have enough vaccine at present. Id they did they’d be offering it to everyone.

There isn't a vaccine supply issue, there's a staffing and venue issue. Those vaccines don't go into the arms of people by magic you know!

@Billandben444

Keep checking online, they add extra dates every day.

I can't find anything locally and it's annoying to have to cancel the appointment each time to check. DH was able to have one in the same town and I believe other people are still able to book but it's not coming up for me. I've booked one in another town but can't get an appointment until 4th January unfortunately. When I had my original vaccines there was a lot of choice. I'm hoping I get a text from the local health group with more choices nearer the time.

I'm stressed enough at the thought of having the bloody booster without having a problem getting an appointment!

@CrimbleCrumble1

South Easr here, I got a text and could easily book A slot a few miles from where I live.

How close was that to your 6 months? I'm not entitled to have mine until 20th December and I'm hoping I get a text (I'm also in the SE)

I got the text on the day of the 6 month anniversary of 2nd jab. I had to wait about a week to book as I had covid 5 months after 2nd jab.
So you you should get a text on 20th December.

(Un)fortunately there are even more close & easy to get to vaccine sites in my town as they are using shops in the town centre that have closed, never to re-open.
Sad for the shops but excellent for getting a booster.

Thanks @CrimbleCrumble1. I probably still won't get a jab until the new year but hopefully somewhere more convenient.

It's totally random. I couldn't get an appointment until the end of December but DP (we live in the same house and are in the same age bracket) was offered an appointment the very next day and at a totally different selection of venues.

I can’t get mine till January but I was given loads of choice

@Wellbythebloodyhell

It would also be helpful if the powers that be told the people who are behind the scenes organising clinics,staff, supply etc when guidance is going to change before announcing it to the public so they can start to put things in place for an increase of demand. Instead we tend to find out as its being announced on the news, then we get a flurry of very angry patients annoyed we can't offer them the vaccine that 10 minutes ago Boris said they was entitled to and have been encouraged to get. I wish people gave more consideration to people behind the scenes who make this vaccine roll out actually happen instead of moaning and criticising it all the time. I can assure you people are working flat out to try to deliver it as quickly and safely as possible

This.

And thank you @Wellbythebloodyhell

Friends of mine that live in the same small town as me are being offered centres much Closer than I am being offered. It I stupidly randomn.