Whilst it’s over a year since the first COVID-19 vaccinations started to be rolled out in England, village residents have been forced to travel further afield to get our jabs – until now!
The good news is that the first ever vaccinations against the Coronavirus to be administered here in Ruddington were given to patients at Ruddington Medical Centre just before Christmas. Better still, regular opportunities will begin this week at Evans Pharmacy – meaning most villagers won’t need to head off to larger vaccination centres or other pharmacies to receive our first, second or booster doses. It’s hoped this greater convenience – coupled with a familiar location and staff – may encourage some people who’ve previously been hesitant to come forward, or are not up-to-date, to get themselves protected.
The Charles Street pharmacy is offering COVID-19 vaccines to those aged 16 and above from Thursday 6th January*. PLEASE NOTE that, as this is a ‘pop-up’ clinic, bookings will need to be made via the branch rather than using the online national booking system. You can call in or telephone the team on 0115 9211086 to book your slot.
Pharmacist Emma Anderson says “Yvonne Pritchard (pharmacist) and I have been involved in vaccinations at large sites since January 2021, so we are absolutely delighted to be able to offer this service in Ruddington. We are keen to see people over 16 years of age for 1st, 2nd and booster doses, using the Pfizer vaccine. This vaccine is ideal for use during pregnancy. It is amazing that such a quick and simple thing can make such a difference to your health.”
Emma is happy to see people first for a chat if they are unsure if they are ready for the vaccine. She is also able to support nervous and needle-phobic patients to make vaccination less stressful by focusing on their breathing. Emma will be undertaking appointments on Thursdays during January.
She continues: “We are excited that the recommendations on COVID vaccines have been updated to allow 16 and 17 year olds to have a booster dose. We do hope that this will minimise COVID disruption to their education and social lives that are so important at this life stage, as well as reducing their risks of having long COVID.”
The latest figures for Ruddington (2nd January 2022) show that only 66.3% of those eligible have had their 3rd or booster dose so far. Meantime, fuelled by the more infectious new Omicron variant – the number of COVID cases in our village is still on the rise – with another 128 positive results in the last seven days (as of 29th December 2021). This keeps our village above the national average at 1617.6 cases per 100,000 people.
The current Government rules are that those who are aged over 18 need to wait four weeks after having COVID for their vaccine, and 16 and 17-year-olds need to wait twelve weeks after having COVID for a vaccine. Those under 18 years of age need to wait 3 months between vaccines. All vaccinations remain free of charge for everyone.
Emma adds: “Please come dressed to be vaccinated: a T-shirt is ideal. To protect all of our patients we need everyone to wear a mask in the consultation room, please. Although you are not advised to drive within 15 minutes of a vaccination, if you do not suffer from allergies you can leave the pharmacy straight away after your appointment.”
It’s hoped COVID jabs can continue locally with further ‘pop up’ sessions at Evans Pharmacy in Ruddington, alongside their existing programme of flu vaccinations, if the demand is high for villagers to get vaccinated here.
* Please note that, at the moment, our village pharmacy can only cater for those aged 16 and above. We’ll let you know if that changes.
