who should run the vaccination service

News conference at 5 with Army logistics officer.

Hundreds of Armed Forces personnel were lined up to support schools' testing but are currently not needed in that capacity. They do remain on standby.

My "local" vaccination centre is 23 minutes walk from the nearest tube and there are no parking facilities- that was well planned. I could maybe walk for 10 minutes with a rest or two but no more.

I believe pharmacies are being contacted next week- that is good news but why not today?

Last night's BBC news had a GP from a practice some miles from me saying that no GP practices in her area had been offered any vaccine. No vaccinations have been done in my local area yet either. If the central system can't roll out vaccine to areas ready and willing to vaccinate, there's not much hope of everyone vulnerable getting a vaccine quickly.

A friend in a London borough close to mine has a superb GP surgery and they are starting with the oldest patients and working their way down through the ages. They appear to have sufficient vaccine but for how long is anybody's guess. Her husband has not been outside their front door since last March so he is almost unable to walk.

Why the insistence on large hubs.? I really do think what is needed are centres on the high street , local village/church halls , medical centres. places which are easily accessible..Why the resistance to using the local pharmacist~this all reminds me of the early testing fiasco when PHE wanted to keep central control .
Have they learned nothing ?

My local pharmacy is going to be giving vaccinations when they get some of the Oxford ones in,

When will people stop criticising the NHS and start thinking positively?

A few facts from a personal perspective but they must be replicated a fair bit across the country:

Daughter (GP) had a week's holiday before and one after Christmas. She spent both working from 6.30 a.m. until late evening working on setting up vaccination centres in her county. She will not have been the only one working such hours.

It is an enormous task with great responsibility: I don't have complete detail to give you (as I have only managed to speak to her for four minutes in the last weeks) but do you really think that if the process was simple and easy, that this would not have been done?

Does it not occur to anyone bad-mouthing their GP practice or the NHS in general that there is more involved in vaccinating large numbers of people than meets the eye?

My daughter had 40 people to interview on one morning: people are required in car parks; to give directions inside buildings; cleaners of buildings and toilets; to give lifts to the elderly; to maintain stocks; to ensure staffing levels; to ensure safety post injection etc., etc. There are dozens are roles I have not listed and needless to say if staff for these roles had not been vetted there would be an outcry.

Last weekend, the refrigerator and vaccines were due to arrive. My daughter arrived at the vaccination hub to find the cleaner booked and paid for had not been in to clean, particularly where the 'fridge holding the vaccine was to be. She got down on her hands and knees and scrubbed the kitchen so the 'fridge and vaccines could be installed.

The 'fridge didn't arrive and neither did the vaccines. Both completely out of her control.

The vaccination process is not simple a matter of people rocking up in an orderly queue and having a needle shoved in to their arm. There are so many dimensions to this and will GN-ers please, for goodness' sake, think before they post.

Each time a set-back (vaccine arrival etc.) is encountered, every patient booked in for vaccination has to be contacted. It is a mammoth task.

Incidentally, many GP practices have large lists of patients: perhaps 12-24,000 and it is impractical to vaccinate even a percentage of those on site which is why vaccination hubs are necessary (they have parking and space etc.).

Obviously things do go wrong and the NHS should be held to account if they mess up but this is an unprecedented time and NHS staff, whether working in a Covid ward, A and E or working pretty much around the clock to organise inoculations should be afforded some form of respect. Many are are risking their lives - stop carping about them. Instead volunteer to help.

Posters here who ask why their GP surgeries cannot be used to vaccinate? I guess that you would not be one of the patients (as I was earlier this week) who had need of a GP. I was able to speak to a doctor and obtain my prescription/treatment as the GP was not vaccinating.

Perhaps surgeries will, in time, be used - I don't have that information but everyone involved in this scheme is feeling their way. If this process were simple, it would have been operational by now.

Please think before you post, the NHS and staff are not a punch-bag for you to play with at will.

Candelle ?

I've never worked in the NHS but I have in my past been involved with the rollout of big projects and people have no idea what goes on behind the scenes. All the best to your daughter.

Thank you Candelle, I hope everybody reads your post - it describes the realities very well indeed.

Nobody is criticising the nhs.
They are discussing how the vaccine is being implemented.

As far as I've seen, nobody has anything but admiration for nhs workers.

As a retired nurse (4 years ago) I was involved in a number of mass immunisation programmes in schools . So you would think I would be ideal and require very little training or updating , but I have also given up the will to live with all the form filling required , so I offered my services as a support worker / admin . Heard nothing. I am just wondering if we are all being ignored including pharmacists ( who would be excellent) so that the government will be able to pull in one of their many”friends” to run it at great expense . Maybe Dido could help as she has been so amazing in the organisation of Test and Trace ! I felt so frustrated and angry after Question Time last night , all NHS frontline staff should have had it by now , once again they have been failed .

I want a nice soldier to do mine. Preferably an officer in full dress uniform.

Candelle
Did you see Dr Rosemary Leonard on BBC breakfast yesterday morning. She is a General practice GP. She was less than impressed by the organisation that employs her.
I was in my surgery this week. They haven't heard a word from anyone.
I have every respect for your daughter and every other frontline worker. But I fear that a lot of backroom staff are sadly lacking in going that extra mile, so to speak.

Lots of GP surgeries are being used to vaccinate. One just round the corner from me is vaccinating as I type.

www.theguardian.com/society/2020/dec/23/gps-photo-diary-captures-positive-vibes-of-covid-vaccine-rollout

They've been told to stand down routine care which isn't ideal, but needs must

www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jan/07/gp-surgeries-england-begin-offering-oxford-coronavirus-vaccine

In the Mirror;
The government today confirmed the location of seven "super-vaccination" centres in England that will open next week.
London's Excel Centre and the Manchester Tennis and Football Centre are among the vast venues to hand out jabs.
The other five centres are in Surrey, Bristol, Newcastle, Birmingham and Stevenage.
No10 said the conference and sports centres will be staffed by a mixture of NHS staff and volunteers, and add to 775 GP-led centres and 207 hospital sites due to open by the end of this week.
Not all seven will open on Monday and exact opening dates are still to be confirmed.
But the Prime Minister's official spokesman said: "They are opening next week.

There’s now a supply problem with the vaccine, the most efficient areas are running out.

No surprise there.

Just heard that the Army are going to take over distribution, there is hope! Also that all hospitals are to start vaccinating their staff, plus those out in the community, a real push on.

Mam had her vaccination today, 3 gp practices coming together at one site. Busy car park, rural area, Ice and snow so expecting problems. But great organisation and very quick, really grateful. Unfortunately just two days worth of vaccines so friends still waiting for appointments.

Just read this; Todays press

Dozens of pensioners missed their Pfizer vaccination at scheduled appointments in Kent, it has been revealed.

It is understood there is only a two-hour window to find another patient before the precious vaccine becomes unusable.

I'm getting fed up with all this news about elderly people not turning up for their jabs. Aren't we constantly being told how much missed appointments cost the NHS? What's wrong with people? Fine, if they don't want the jab let the centre know in advance.
If they'd prefer to wait for the Oxford vaccine then send them to the bottom of the queue.

Lots of people in this area missed their flu vaccine appts at the back end of last year. Why? Because the letters informing them of the appointments weren’t sent out until after the date had passed. That’s just appalling admin.

In this day and age why can't everyone be notified by text? Older people manage their hair appointment reminders this way.

Unfortunately not everyone has a phone or a laptop. I must say that the organisation for the flu jab at my surgery was really efficient . I hope they can repeat it for this jab. It seems as if the supply isn't there.Perhaps the Health minister and the P.M should not over egg the information and make claims which cannot be reached.