COVID-19 vaccinations are now underway in Southam. Eligible patients will receive telephone calls or text messages inviting them to make an appointment for their vaccination in due course. Invitations will be sent gradually according to both the supply of vaccine from the NHS, and according to the priority groups set out by the Joint Committee on Vaccination & Immunisation. At this stage you do not need to do anything further, and if eligible you will be contacted in due course.

You may also have also received a national letter inviting you to book a vaccination at a mass vaccination site (our nearest is in Stoneleigh). You are entitled to do so if you have received this invite, but you may also wait to be invited locally if you have not been so already.

Latest Update 30.4.22

The Government has announced details of the Spring COVID Vaccine Booster campaign. These vaccines are being delivered from Southam Clinic again from 10th April 2022 on Sunday’s, Monday’s and Tuesday’s. Vaccinations are also offered on other days at Stoneleigh Park.

Who is Eligible for a Booster:

Age 75 and over
aged 12 and over and have a weakened immune system

When are you Eligible:

3 months after your last COVID vaccine, but is is advised you wait until 6 months after your last dose

How do I book:

Via text message if you have received a text invite
OR Book Online
OR call 119

As the practice is not delivering the vaccinations, it is best to call 119 with any queries.

LATEST UPDATE - 2.12.21

Following the Government announcement on 29th November, the NHS is developing plans to extend the Covid-19 booster vaccination programme to include everyone aged 18 and over. These plans have not yet been completed so further guidance is awaited.

Some of the plans are as follows:

A Booster will be offered to everyone aged 18 and over
12 to 15 year olds will also be offered a second dose of the vaccine
an additional booster will be available for people who are immunosuppressed

When Can I have my Booster?

The Booster can be given 3+ months after the second dose.

What do I need to do?

For now, all you need to do is wait to be contacted by the NHS. The Southam Vaccination service will be in touch with eligible patients via telephone or text message, and once there are appointments available for you to book.
You do not need to call anyone at present
If you are over 40 or a health and social care worker, and are eligible for your booster, go online to www.nhs.uk or call 119 to book your appointment. Visit www.happyhealthylives.uk/vaccinationdrop-ins to see all the places you can go for a walk-in appointment.
If you have any questions or concerns you can contact the Southam COVID Vaccination booking line on 01926 962719.

LATEST UPDATE - 11.8.21

We have had a recent update from our Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) regarding the vaccination of those under the age of 18. It reads as follows:

“You may have seen in national news items that the Government are considering extending the vaccine offer to 16 - 17 year olds.
There is nothing you need to do now - you will be contacted and invited for your vaccination as soon as the programme is up-and-running.

We are currently waiting for the Joint Committee for Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) to update and publish.

We are also currently awaiting guidance on the vaccination of 12 - 17 year old clinically vulnerable children and will be in touch as and when we have further information.”

For more information regarding the vaccine itself, please either:

Visit the NHS Website, OR
E-mail: warnoccg.vaccinecoventrywarwickshire@nhs.net

FAQ’s

1. When am I going to get the vaccination?

Vaccination have commenced and patients will be invited according to specific prioritisation groups. These groups have been compiled by the Joint Committee on Vaccination & Immunisation. Specific details can be found here.

2. Where will it be done?

Vaccinations will be done in Southam, the specific site is yet to be announced, but they will not be done within GP surgeries.

3. How will I be invited?

When it is your time to be invited you will either receive a phone call from the Central Booking Office or a text message inviting you to book an appointment.

4. Will I get a choice of vaccine?

No, there will be no choice as to which vaccine you receive. All vaccines have been approved by the MHRA, the medicines regulator, as being both safe and effective.

5. Are you licenced to give these vaccines?

Vaccinations will be provided only by those who have received the appropriate training.

6. Can my mother have a vaccine before her age group is due, as I am very worried about her?

No, the order of prioritisation has been set at a national level by the Joint Committee on Vaccination & Immunisation.

7. Can my wife have it done at the same time as me? She's in her 70s and I'm in my 80's but it would be more convenient for us to come together

No, the order of prioritisation has been set at a national level by the Joint Committee on Vaccination & Immunisation.

8. What group am I in?

Patients will be invited according to specific prioritisation groups. These groups have been compiled by the Joint Committee on Vaccination & Immunisation. Specific details can be found here.

9. Can I get it quicker because I have x, y or z or am vulnerable because ...?

Patients will be invited according to specific prioritisation groups. These groups have been compiled by the Joint Committee on Vaccination & Immunisation. Specific details can be found here. We have no influence over these specific groups.

10. Who do I let know if I don't want it?

You don’t need to inform us at present.

13. Should I have it if I am pregnant?

Although the available data do not indicate any harm to pregnancy, there is insufficient evidence to recommend routine use of COVID-19 vaccines during pregnancy

PREVIOUS UPDATES

UPDATE - 1.7.21

The COVID vaccination programme from Southam Clinic has continued at pace.

All adults (from the age of 18 upwards) are now eligible to book a vaccination if they have not done so already.

This can be done by calling the booking line on 01926 962719.

UPDATE - 30.04.21

There has been a lot of talk about COVID-19 Vaccination Passports. It now appears likely that the NHS App will be able to display your vaccination status, and therefore serve as proof that you have been vaccinated. This is expected to be introduced following an update to the NHS App on 17th May 2021.

So thats another great reason to download the NHS App, as well as using it to book or cancel appointments, request your medications or view your medical records!

It’s probably worth noting that the GP surgery is not involved in this process.

UPDATE - 09.04.21

We are aware of the concern raised around the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine recently.

Whilst the safety of the vaccine must be considered, it is worth remembering that the rates of possible side effects from the vaccine are very low, especially when considering the high numbers of people that have already had the vaccine.

Please see the latest publication from Public Health England on the vaccine and the risk of blood clots.

UPDATE - 09.03.21

Local vaccinations are progressing incredibly well, so well in fact that 97% of those aged over 70 years have now been vaccinated.

The Southam vaccination centre is currently calling those in Group 6 & 7 (i.e. those aged over 60 years) according to available vaccine supply. If you have not yet been called then please be patient, you will be called in due course. Vaccinations remain limited by the national supply chain.

If you are a carer, or aged over 55 years (Group 8) then it is possible to book your vaccine now through the larger vaccination site at Stoneleigh Park. For more information, or to book please visit the NHS COVID Vaccination Booking Page or call 119 free of charge, anytime between 7am and 11pm - seven days a week.

UPDATE - 10.02.21

Vaccinations are continuing well, but are limited by the vaccine supply given to our local vaccination site at Southam Clinic.

Locally, approximately in excess of 90% of eligible patients in Groups 1-4 have now been vaccinated.

The vaccination site has now been given permission to start vaccinating Group 5 patients (aged 65 and over), so invitations are currently in progress. If you find yourself in this age range then please be patient and you will be contacted via telephone once an appointment is available.

Housebound individuals are being vaccinated from this week, and again if you are eligible, you will be contacted.

If you are aged over 70 and have not yet had your vaccine then please let us know, by email preferably.

UPDATE 03.02.2021

The Southam COVID vaccination programme has been really successful to date, with at least 91.7% of our patients aged over 70 now vaccinated. This has been a huge effort by all but a significant thank you goes to the South Warwickshire GP Federation, the volunteers and our patients who were often called at short notice, even in the snow! Well done to all!

The vaccination programme is therefore on track to meet the government target of vaccinating those in priority groups 1-4 by mid-February (that is those individuals 70 years of age and over and clinically extremely vulnerable). There is a temporary lull at present as we await further supplies of vaccine, but patients will continue to be contacted as and when the vaccine supply arrives. Therefore it remains that you do not need to do anything, but await contact from the vaccination booking centre.

UPDATE 02.02.21

The Southam COVID vaccination programme has been really successful to date, and is on track to meet the government target of vaccinating those in priority groups 1-4 by mid-February (that is those individuals 70 years of age and over and clinically extremely vulnerable). There is a temporary lull at present as we await further supplies of vaccine, but patients will continue to be contacted as and when the vaccine supply arrives. Therefore it remains that you do not need to do anything, but await contact from the vaccination booking centre.

You may also have had a national letter inviting you to book a vaccination at a mass vaccination site (our nearest is in Stoneleigh). You are entitled to do so if you have received this invite, but you may also wait to be invited locally if you have not been so already.

UPDATE 14.1.21

COVID-19 vaccinations are now underway in Southam. Eligible patients will receive telephone calls inviting them to make an appointment for their vaccination in due course. Invitations will be sent gradually according to both the supply of vaccine from the NHS, and according to the priority groups set out by the Joint Committee on Vaccination & Immunisation. At this stage you do not need to do anything further, and if eligible you will be contacted in due course.

UPDATE 11.1.21

We can confirm that invitations to receive the COVID-19 vaccination have now started and vaccinations will be commencing later this week. Invitations will initially be made via telephone and text message. Invitations will be sent gradually according to both the supply of vaccine from the NHS, and according to the priority groups set out by the Joint Committee on Vaccination & Immunisation.

UPDATE 8.1.21

Our local COVID vaccination programme is due to commence imminently.

As previously reported, we have been told to expect vaccinations to commence next week. This remains the plan but is dependant on the delivery of vaccine arriving. Once a delivery date is confirmed, eligible patients will be contacted directly via telephone or text message from a central booking service (i.e. not from the surgery).

Many thanks for all your patience. For those who are eligible you don’t need to do anything. The central booking service will be in touch with you directly in due course, and invitations will be made over the coming weeks and months.

UPDATE 4.1.21

Plans for a local Southam-based COVID vaccination programme are developing well.

We have been informed by our local Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) that the local programme is aiming to commence as early as next week.

We will of course keep you posted, and will inform any patients as and when they are eligible for the vaccination.

UPDATE 31.12.20

We have been informed by our local CCG that plans remain underway for a local vaccination programme and the CCG will be informing us of more formal plans very soon. It is expected that vaccinations should commence in the coming weeks.

UPDATE 28.12.20 - Why vaccinations won’t be delivered in the surgery

South Warwickshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) is running the Covid vaccination programme for the GP surgeries in the Southam Area.

Two years ago, general practices all over the country were encouraged to form local groupings called Primary Care Networks (PCNs). Our local PCN is called Warwickshire East and originally comprised of 5 practices (although one has since left to be on their own leaving us as a group of 4).

Before the Covid vaccination became available, the government asked the CCGs around the country to provide a Covid vaccination service. The CCGs, in turn, asked their local PCNs whether they wished to take the responsibility for this. If the PCN did not wish to do so, then the CCG would run the vaccination programme themselves.

You will know that many of the other local PCNs decided to take responsibility for the programme. However, all the practices in the East PCN had concerns about how they could provide the service. All the practices are small and have limited capacity regarding available staff. Since all the practices needed to be fully on-board with doing it, the East PCN decided to leave the CCG to provide the service.

Each of the East PCN practices has their reasons for their decision. St Wulfstan Surgery made their decision based on the following information:

· It was unclear how many staff would be needed daily at a central “Vaccination Hub”. All we knew was that it could require 8 or more staff (including doctors and nurses) every day, 7 days a week, 12 hours a day, for up to 6 months. If some practices were unable to provide staff, their replacements would need to come from other participating East PCN practices. Some of the East PCN practices said they would not be able to provide any staff.

· The date of delivery of the vaccine would not be released until 2 days before arrival, during which time batches of 1000 people would need to be invited.

· Staff would be working in a central “hub” area, so not available to work within the practice. More staff could be “drafted” over from the surgery if staff at the “hub”, on the day, are unwell or have to self-isolate meaning cancellation of GP surgery work.

· If we were to have an extra cold freezer (at -70oC) at the hub, we would need to install secure power back-ups.

· The practices would need to employ security staff or install security systems to ensure the safety of the vaccines.

· The practices could be responsible, at their own cost, for paying for any vaccine that was not used within 3½ days of starting vaccinating.

· The government retained the right to unilaterally change the agreement without discussion.

· If any practice within the PCN wished to “do-it-alone”, they would have to vaccinate all the patients of all the other practices.

· A GMC registered doctor (i.e. not retired) must be on site at the “hub” to sign a legal document for each of the patients stating that there were no contraindications to that patient having the vaccination. This is possible when we vaccinate our own practice’s patients, but not possible when we don’t know patients from other practices.

· A doctor must sign a document confirming that they are satisfied that the person giving the vaccination is competent and has completed full training to do so. Once again, this is possible for our own practice staff but very difficult with staff from other practices.

The above points gave St Wulfstan Surgery concern. However, the difficulty in providing such an open-ended service which might be changed at any moment was made harder by the instruction from central government that we must not reduce or cease any of the normal GP work. We must continue keeping our doors open for face-to-face appointments, continue providing relevant health checks, seeing people who are ill or who are worried that they are ill, and continue the essential back-office work of processing outgoing letters, incoming reports, pathology results and legal reports.

The Covid pandemic has had a major impact on the pressures in general practice. We hope you can see that we have kept our doors open throughout and worked hard to make sure that it is still easy to make an appointment. But it has been difficult to maintain the service. 50% of the practice staff (including doctors, nurses, receptionists and administrative staff) have, at some time since March, been off work isolating because of Covid.

For us to have committed an unknown (but substantial) part of our staff for a “vaccinating hub”, perhaps on a daily basis for 6 months, would threaten the important regular work we do as a GP surgery. We did not feel we had the resources to provide safe and efficient primary care and a safe vaccinating service. Because the CCG does have these resources and is responsible for ensuring provision of the vaccination service, the doctors decided to leave the CCG to run it.

In some parts of the county, Covid vaccinations have already started. But not in all areas. Not all PCNs are in wave 1. The vaccines are being rolled out to some PCNs ahead of others. Patients of the East PCN will not miss out.