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COVID-19 Vaccine Update No 21

Final group of adults start to be invited across Sussex

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This week 25 to 29 year olds have become eligible for their vaccination. People in this age group are starting to receive a text message to invite them to their vaccination, and the National Booking Service is now open for anyone in this age group to arrange their appointment. GP led local vaccination services are also contacting patients who are now eligible to invite them for their vaccination. It is the first step into the final age group to become eligible for their vaccination - those aged 18-29 - with the rest of the group expected to become eligible in the coming days. It comes as latest data shows that more than 1.8million vaccinations have now been delivered across Sussex, with 96.1% of all those over 50 now having received their first dose, and 87.4 receiving their second. See below for more headlines from today's data:

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Rush for appointments for younger adults - but reassurance there are plenty more appointments at local services

Tuesday morning on the National Booking Service was likened to the annual scramble for Glastonbury tickets with close to half a million appointments made across the country. By 12pm, just five hours after eligibility widened to those aged between 25 and 29, the National Booking Service had seen 2.5 times the number of total appointments made yesterday, with 493,000 slots reserved, around 100,000 an hour on average and more than 1,600 per minute. The huge appetite saw people take to social media to compare it to the festival, with people posting about setting their alarms and being as excited as when they were booking for the music festival. 

But even though there was a huge rush, the Sussex programme is reassuring people that there are lots of appointments for local services for our residents. Lucy was on of the first from our area to book on Tuesday said: "When vaccines became available for the age range 25 - 29, I went onto the NHS website to book my two appointments. This process was straightforward and although I was put into a queue due to the demand on the site I soon quickly moved from number 10,899 to the booking stage in just under half an hour, securing two appointments within a 5 minute drive from my house." If you are eligible please book your appointment online or call 119 to arrange your appointment.

Quiet Covid-19 Vaccination Session - Crawley, Sunday 27 June

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This Quiet Session is being offered to people living in Sussex who are currently eligible for the vaccine and who may need more time for their appointment, or who have extra access needs where a quieter and calmer environment would help support them to receive their vaccination. This includes:
• People with learning disabilities

• People who are autistic

• People living with a neurodiverse condition

• People with Dementia and/or Alzheimer's

You can book your carer in at the same time if they need their first vaccination dose and we can help you arrange free transport or a live British Sign Language (BSL) interpreter.
To book your appointment Call or text Claire Evans on 07393 798 050 or email ClaireEvans4@nhs.net

Efforts continue to make sure everyone is able to have their vaccination

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Meridian Hall, East Grinstead welcomed it final vaccination patients on Friday (4th June) as the building begins its transition back to an event venue. The Meridian Hall team has administered more the 28,500 vaccination doses since it opened its doors in January. The vaccination site has been managed by local GP Federation Alliance for Better Care in partnership with East Grinstead Town Council. "We're so grateful to have been able to use this well-loved local space for our vaccination programme. We have been overwhelmed by the support we've received from the local community and the volunteers, particularly East Grinstead Lions, who have come forward and willingly given their time and enthusiasm. We would like to thank the Council and all our staff and volunteers who have each contributed to the success of the local vaccination programme," said Katherine Saunders, CEO Alliance for Better Care. 

Clair Hall Vaccination Site in Haywards Heath will now host ABC's vaccination clinics for the area and will continue to welcome both first and second dose patients. Residents of West Sussex who have no means to get to their vaccination appointment can arrange a free return journey by calling West Sussex Travel Co-ordinators 01444 275008.

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This week we have been working with The Fishermen's Mission and the GetSeaFit programme to make sure that their migrant fishermen are protected by receiving their vaccination. For the crews coming into Shoreham this is vital protection whilst they are at sea and when they come into port. Working with Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust, and their team at the Brighton Centre, their teams were vaccinated this week. 

Half a million Covid jabs booked in 'Glastonbury rush' this morning 

The NHS saw a welcome surge in demand for vaccines this morning as half a million life-saving jabs were booked in a rush likened to the annual scramble for Glastonbury tickets. 

By 12pm today, just five hours after eligibility widened to those aged between 25 and 29, the National Booking Service had seen 2.5 times the number of total appointments made yesterday, with 493,000 slots reserved, around 100,000 an hour on average and more than 1,600 per minute. The rollout opened to those aged 25 to 29 today and the huge appetite saw people take to social media to compare it to the festival, with people posting about setting their alarms and being as excited as when they were booking for the music festival. The charge for bookings by younger adults today is hoped to prompt even more people to come forward and comes on the six-month anniversary of the world's first Covid vaccine being administered to Maggie Keenan in Coventry. Text messages began to be sent out to people in the newly eligible age bracket this morning, with more receiving the invite throughout the day and this week. NHS Chief Executive Sir Simon Stevens said: "This encouraging Glastonburystyle rush for appointments has already now seen hundreds of thousands of people between 25 and 29 book in for their NHS covid jabs, as more vaccine supplies continue to come on-line. "Pleasingly this suggests strong enthusiasm for vaccination amongst people in their twenties, following hard on the heels of the millions of others who've already taken up our offer." NHS England's primary care medical director Dr Nikki Kanani said: "It's great that young people are so keen to get vaccinated as this remains our best defence against Covid, and so we would urge anyone receiving an invitation today, or this week, to book in and get protected." So far the NHS in England has delivered more than 57.8 million vaccine doses to over 75 per cent of adults. More than half of adults are now fully vaccinated giving them maximum possible protection from coronavirus. Around 3 million text messages are being sent out over this week to those eligible asking people to book in through the national booking service, with GPs also set to urge the newly eligible to come forward over the coming days. Text invitations, which do not expire, appear as an alert from 'NHSvaccine' and include a web link to the NHS website to reserve an appointment. When invited, people will be able to book at one of the 1,600 Vaccination Centre, pharmacy or general practice sites across the country that are available through the national booking service. Vaccination centres are also available in convenient locations such as mosques, museums and rugby grounds. Ben Davison, Executive Director of Product Development at NHS Digital said: "The online 'Book a coronavirus vaccination' service has enabled millions of people so far to book their vaccinations quickly, easily and in an accessible way and it's great to see such demand from this age group.

"This is making a significant impact and we are proud to be part of the NHS effort to contain the pandemic and save lives." 

The South-East Making Every Contact Count & Vaccine Uptake group* have produced 2 resources to support anyone who may be talking with others about having the Covid-19 vaccine (e.g. frontline practitioners, volunteers, community and faith leaders, Covid-19 champions):

Resource 1: Talking about having the Covid-19 vaccine video (10mins)

A training video to support asking the right questions, keeping the conversation person-centred and focused on the benefits and motivation of having the vaccine. It draws upon skills developed in Making Every Contact Count training.

Resource 2: Talking about the Covid-19 Vaccine signposting resource

Useful links to information to help you when talking about having the COVID-19 vaccine. The links are grouped into sections to make it easier to find the relevant information for different conversations. Sections include: About vaccines; Effectiveness of vaccines; Faith and Covid-19 information; Other languages; and a lot more.

The resources can be found on the HEE page.

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