Staddy function centre and Riviera Centre among community sites chosen for mass vaccinations
Plymouth's Staddy function centre and Torbay's Riviera International Conference Centre will become Covid vaccination centres, under plans announced by Devon's NHS bosses.
Family doctors in Devon will begin giving out the coronavirus vaccine people from today.
GP practices are working in groups to set up local vaccination centres for their patients, which will open in phases over coming weeks.
The first phase of GP-led vaccination centres in Devon will see the opening of eight sites serving 49 of the county’s practices.
The NHS is contacting people directly when they require a jab.
As well as using NHS locations like GP surgeries and health centres, some local vaccination centres are being opened in more unusual venues.
In Devon, these specially adapted sites include Exmouth Tennis and Fitness Centre, The Staddy function centre in Plymouth, and the Riviera International Centre in Torquay.
The eight locations in Devon’s first wave of local vaccination centres will see nurses, paramedics, pharmacists and other NHS staff working alongside doctors to vaccinate people aged over 80 and care home workers, who have been identified as priority groups for a life-saving vaccination.
In Devon, the eight sites in the first phase are:
• Abbey Surgery, Tavistock
• Exmouth Tennis and Fitness Centre
• Limes Surgery, Exminster
• Okehampton Medical Centre
• Riviera International Centre, Torquay
• St Boniface House, near Buckfastleigh
• Seaton Community Hospital
• The Staddy function centre, Plymouth
Between them, the sites will vaccinate people from 49 of the county’s GP practices.
Dr Mark Sanford-Wood, a GP and Clinical Director of Mewstone Primary Care Network which serves Plymstock, Yealmpton and Wembury, said: “The Staddy is a well known local venue with plenty of space to safely set up the specialist clinical facilities we need for the programme.
“This is the most significant vaccination programme ever undertaken by the NHS and we are eager to play our part in protecting people against coronavirus and saving lives and livelihoods.”
More local vaccination centres run by family doctors will open in coming weeks across the county as the roll-out of the greatest vaccination programme in NHS history expands out of hospital hubs.
Simon Jolly, managing director of Riviera International Conference Centre, where patients from ten local practices are being vaccinated, added: “We were really happy to be able to put the Riviera International Centre forward as a venue for Covid-19 vaccinations. It’s an honour to be able to support such a vital project.”
Darryn Allcorn, Devon’s lead chief nurse, said: “We’re working seven days a week to make sure eligible people in Devon a vital vaccine as soon as possible.
“As a nurse I am proud to be part of this huge national effort to protect our patients against the virus and I would urge people in Devon to come forward when they are called up for the vaccine.
“I can reassure everyone that the NHS will be in touch with you when it’s your turn to have the vaccine. Contacting your local hospital or practice only slows us down as it takes up precious time and resources to respond to the calls.”