Covid 19 vaccine frustration set to improve for Heathfield
26th January
Before Christmas, while many in other areas were getting their call for the vaccine, patients in Heathfield were left wondering when their turn would come.
Patients from the High Street and Firs Surgery only started to receive their vaccinations last week. Without a local centre administering the vaccine, the over 80s were forced to make the ten mile trip to Uckfield Meads Surgery for their jab. It is understood that the Vaccination Team from The Meads have vaccinated all of the carehomes in Heathfield, and that the four priority groups will be covered by the date promised by the UK Government of the 15th February 2021. We received this additional reassurance from Mark Garnett, a Vaccination Champion for East Sussex Clinical Commissioning Group.
“It is very much the intention that the first four priority groups (listed below) will be completed on time by 15th February.”
Priority Groups
1 Residents in a care home for older adults and their carers
2 All those 80 years of age and over and frontline health and social care workers
3 All those 75 years of age and over
4 All those 70 years of age and over and people deemed to be clinically extremely vulnerable
Many residents wondered why a High St Surgery GP-led vaccination programme was not operating in the town, and indeed this was a question that local MP Huw Merriman has raised at many levels.
“I asked that we plan for the second vaccination stage, ensuring that the elderly and most vulnerable are vaccinated locally with the next priority groups being asked to use hubs for their first dose if they are better able to travel longer distances,” he explained.
It seems as if someone was listening, because we have just had the good news that a change in provision for Heathfield has been agreed. It would appear to be subject to the delivery of the vaccine, but definitely a step in the right direction.
Local vaccination service announced for Heathfield
It has just been announced – today, Tuesday 26 January, that the High St and Firs Surgery will in fact be making appointments for patients to receive the vaccine at the surgery in Heathfield. A social media post from the practice confirmed this:
“We will be contacting patients aged 75 and over – those in the next priority groups – and making appointments as deliveries of the vaccine are confirmed. “
The much larger Brighton Vaccination Centre will also be opening around the 29th of January as the effort to vaccinate all groups in the area ramps up.
The Vaccination Champions
The Vaccine Champions – Mark Garnett, Phil Suter and Richard Ridley are local volunteers helping to keep people informed on the progress of the vaccination programme in the area. They were recruited by the Clinical Commissioning Group for East Sussex and helped us produce this article. Look out for their updates on our Facebook page and local community pages. They will be supporting the vaccine roll out and supplementing other information activity over the vaccination period.
