COVID-19 Vaccination

**COVID-19 Vaccination Update 15/04/2021**

The NHS has started inviting people aged 45 and over for a coronavirus vaccination IN STAGES.  If you receive an invite from the National Booking Service, you can book directly with them, or we will be in touch shortly when we have appointments available.

We have now attempted to contact all our patients in cohorts 1-9, which is anyone aged 50+ and any adult in an at-risk group.  If you are in this category and haven't had your vaccination you are still eligible, but we may have limited appointments to book you in due to a reduced amount of first COVID vaccines to offer during April.

If we have a mobile phone number for you and you are eligible you will receive a text invite to book an appointment in due course.
Once you receive an invite, the text link is live for you book an appointment for 48 hours, so please make sure you book an appointment as soon as you receive it. If you can’t book within 48 hours, we will send another text out at a later date, so we don’t miss you out.
 
We are now only receiving the Oxford Astra Zeneca vaccination for the foreseeable future, with the Pfizer vaccination only being provided for those patients that received this vaccine for their first dose.

All of the GP practices across Torbay have been working collaboratively to deliver this service at the Riviera International Conference Centre for nearly 4 months. We are now starting the second dose vaccinations for all our patients along with continuing to provide the first dose vaccinations throughout the remaining cohorts and will continue to do so over the coming months. We are all extremely grateful for your kind words and letters of support at this time.

Dr Paul Johnson, clinical chair of NHS Devon Clinical Commissions Group said:

“We appreciate that these groups include people who are busy working, but it is definitely worth taking half an hour out of your day to get the protection it affords. Remember, you are not just protecting yourself, you are protecting others when you get the vaccine.”

Please click here for information regarding COVID vaccination for unpaid carers

All patients registered with a GP practice across Torbay who are eligible for the vaccination will be vaccinated at RICC and free parking is available onsite. RICC was chosen due to the strict social distancing measures that need to be in place to protect patients and the special conditions the vaccine needs to be stored in, along with the very strict timescales for the two doses, meaning it can only be achieved on a Torbay-wide level at one location. Here is a short video which has been put together to show you what to expect on the day. Please do not turn up at the centre unless you have been contacted by us with an appointment.

Transport

If you are struggling with transport to RICC, the Torbay Community Helpline have some volunteers that can help. Please contact them direct using the details below.

Aiding the people of Torbay during the COVID-19 Pandemic and beyond, with neighbourly support.

01803 446022 10am-6pm, Mon-Fri, 9:30am-12:30pm Sat

Online form: bit.ly/torbayhelpline

Health and Social Care Staff

All Health and Social Care Workers will be receiving their COVID-19 vaccination at a hospital hub. Your employer will be receiving information on this so please do not contact the practice regarding your vaccinations.

Workforce

Members of staff from all Practices in Torbay are working to deliver the COVID-19 Vaccine to patients at the Riviera Centre. Nurses, GPs, Healthcare Assistants, Admin staff and Managers are all spending time working at the site each day, instead of at their Practice to try and deliver the vaccine to protect our most vulnerable. We do not have any additional staff above and beyond our normal team, many of whom are now working 7 days a week to ensure we offer this service to our patients on top of running our GP practices.

This means that it is harder for us to offer our normal services and you may experience delays in getting through on the phone or seeing your preferred member of staff. Therefore, please do bear with us. As a surgery we remain open and here to help you. Our staff are working harder, working longer hours and are under more pressure than ever before.  Please help us to get through this difficult time together by being patient with us - we are managing this programme on top of the usual high demand at this time of year and we are all working as hard as possible for you so we can get back to a more normal way of life as quickly as possible.

Please continue to adhere to the Hands, Face, Space measures that are helping us limit the transmission of the virus.

For answers to frequently asked questions, click here

For information on what to expect for your vaccination please see link to video

Stay Safe,

The Chilcote Team