Second stage Covid-19 vaccine to go ahead as planned in Bridport next week
The Bridport Medical Centre are urging anyone with an appointment on Wednesday 6th January to still attend
Last updated 3rd Jan 2021
The Bridport medical Centre's vaccination clinic will still go ahead as planned on Wednesday 6th January.
Those due to have their second Covid-19 jab in the area are being urged to still attend their appointment, despite the UK's medical officers announcing that they should be rescheduled.
The Medical centre have 975 patients booked in to the clinic on Wednesday and are concerned that patients may not attend, increasing the risk of a wasted vaccine.
Patients who had their first dose of the Pfizer and BioNTech vaccine in December were due to get one three weeks later.
But, the government have issued new advice warning that the second dose remains effective when given up to 12 weeks after the first dose, and should be given at the end of the 12 week period.
Ministers hoped it would free up more doses and mean as many people as possible would get their first jab.
The Jurassic Coast clinical directors, along with Dorset Clinical Commissioning (CCG) have agreed that The Bridport Medical Centre's clinic will still go ahead on Wednesday.
A Spokesperson from The Bridport Medical Centre said:
"Patients should be reassured that there are no safety concerns in the new guidance, and it will not impact on how effective the vaccination is in protecting patients from Covid-19 once the course is complete.
"Logistically, at such a late stage, it would be impossible to rearrange the appointments for the 975 patients booked on 6th January. Our Jurassic Coast Clinical Directors, together with Dorset CCG have agreed that this clinic should go ahead, as planned.
"We await further guidance on the next stages of the vaccine programme, particularly following the extremely good news that the AstraZeneca (Oxford) vaccine has been approved for use. This vaccine should be far easier to manage and administer in Primary Care.
"The Jurassic Healthcare senior management team meet daily to discuss the programme. We meet again on Monday and will keep you informed of any changes. We will be reviewing how we progress with the next batch of vaccinations, as a matter of urgency, on Monday.
"Patients booked for their second vaccine do not need to call us. We will contact patients to reschedule their second vaccine appointment.
"We ask that patients do not call their surgeries about this change but keep an eye on the practices’ websites and local Social Media. Please do inform any friends/relatives who may not have access to such sites."