A ‘major milestone’ has been met today as the number of first doses of the Covid-19 vaccine offered to people in the south west tops one million.
Staff across the NHS have been supporting the roll-out of the vaccination programme in the areas, with people most at-risk of Covid-19 being prioritised, in line with expert guidance.
The regional milestone is being celebrated at the vaccination centre at the Taunton Racecourse in Somerset, one of seven health and care systems in the South West delivering the vaccination programme.
Alison Wootton, joint senior responsible officer for the Somerset vaccination programme and a senior nurse, said:
“We are delighted to be part of the South West vaccination delivery programme and celebrating the massive amount of hard work by thousands of healthcare colleagues across the South West.
“Just a matter of weeks ago this service did not exist and today we celebrate achieving one million first dose vaccinations in our part of the world.”
“This is a fantastic achievement and while we take a moment to recognise it, we are continuing to offer the vaccine to those most at risk from COVID-19 as quickly as we can. I urge anyone who is in the first four priority groups and is contacted either by a letter from the national booking service, or by your GP surgery, to come forward and book your vaccination as quickly as you can.”
All residents of care homes for older adults in Somerset have also now been offered a first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine aside from those who cannot have it for clinical reasons, and where local directors of public health have advised that care homes cannot be offered the jab due to outbreaks.
In Somerset vaccinations are being delivered from 18 sites including the two hospital hubs at Yeovil District Hospital and Musgrove Park Hospital and from a pharmacy-led hub in Yeovil, as well as 13 GP-led sites across the county. Two further pharmacies, a Boots pharmacy in Taunton and a pharmacy in Bruton, as well as the large centre at Taunton Racecourse, another large centre at the Bath & West Showground, are scheduled to begin vaccinations this week.
