The first people will receive the Oxford University/AstraZeneca Covid vaccine today as the NHS expands COVID-19 vaccination programmes across the UK.
The NHS is the first health service in the world to deploy the life-saving jab, which has been authorised by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) after meeting strict standards of safety, quality and effectiveness. It is the only approved vaccine which can be stored at fridge temperatures.
The Government has secured access to 100 million doses of the vaccine on behalf of the whole of the UK, crown dependencies and Overseas Territories.
More than half a million doses are available today, with tens of millions more to be delivered in the coming weeks and months once batches have been quality checked by the MHRA. More than 730 vaccination sites have already been established across the UK and hundreds more are opening this week to take the total to over 1,000, helping those who are most at risk from Covid-19 to access vaccines for free, regardless of where they live.
UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: “I am delighted that today we are rolling out the Oxford vaccine – a testament to British science. This is a pivotal moment in our fight against this awful virus and I hope it provides renewed hope to everybody that the end of this pandemic is in sight.
“Through its vaccine delivery plan the NHS is doing everything it can to vaccinate those most at risk as quickly as possible and we will rapidly accelerate our vaccination programme.
“While the most vulnerable are immunised, I urge everybody to continue following the restrictions so we can keep cases down and protect our loved ones.”
The first Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccinations will be delivered at hospitals for the first few days, as is standard practice, before the bulk of supplies are sent to hundreds of GP-led services and care homes later in the week.
More than a million people in the UK have already been vaccinated with the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine and its roll out will continue at pace.
The Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine can be stored at fridge temperatures, between two to eight degrees, making it easier to distribute to care homes and other locations across the UK. The vaccines will be deployed through:
- hospital hubs for NHS and care staff and older patients to get vaccinated
- local community services with local teams and GPs already signing up to take part in the programme
- vaccination centres across the country, ensuring people can access a vaccine regardless of where they live
An army of current and former NHS staff have applied to become vaccinators, with tens of thousands having already completed their online training. These are being processed as quickly as possible and volunteer vaccinators will be deployed as more vaccine supplies become available. GPs and local vaccination services have been asked to ensure every care home resident in their local area is vaccinated by the end of January.
The MHRA, Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) and the four UK Chief Medical Officers agreed to delay the gap between the first and second dose of vaccines to protect the greatest number of people in the shortest amount of time.
In line with the recommendations of the JCVI, the vaccine will be rolled out to the priority groups including care home residents and staff, people over 80 and health and care workers, then to the rest of the population in order of age and risk, including those who are clinically extremely vulnerable.
82 year old dialysis patient Brian Pinker received the first vaccination at Oxford’s Churchill Hospital at 7:30 this morning. The foundation hospital is barely a mile from the research labs where the breakthrough vaccine was discovered and developed last year.
There are more than 730 vaccination sites across the UK – and all will be rolling out the new vaccine over the coming days.
Patients in Tayside have been among the first in Scotland to receive the Oxford/Astrazeneca coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine.
The vaccine was approved for use in the UK by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) on 30 December and is being made available to distribution centres through the country.
NHS Tayside is rolling out the vaccines through GP practices in the community, while continuing to vaccinate elderly residents and staff in care homes.
The Astrazeneca vaccine was procured on behalf of the four nations by the UK Government, who have ordered 100 million doses, of which Scotland will get 8.2% based on its population.
As with the Pfizer vaccine, this second vaccine provides an important additional layer of protection to all adults but particularly those most at risk from serious illness and death from COVID-19. With age as the greatest risk factor, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) have retained the same phase 1 priority list for both vaccines.
The priority now is to vaccinate as many people with their first dose as quickly as possible, working through that priority list and the advice that the second dose for both vaccines can be given up to 12 weeks after the first means we can maximise this protection quicker than planned. The second dose remains critical for longer term protection and to complete the course.
Health Secretary Jeane Freeman said: “Seeing the Astrazeneca vaccine being administered to people in the community aged over 80 is a good way to start the New Year and I’m grateful to everyone in NHS Tayside and boards across the country for their work in preparing for the delivery of this newest vaccine.
“Oxford AstraZeneca has the advantage of being much easier to store and transport, which means it is easier to administer in local settings. We are also expecting to receive it in significantly larger quantities than the Pfizer vaccine.
“When it is your turn to be vaccinated you will be contacted by your local health board and I urge you to please take up the offer.
“While vaccination is one of the most important tools we have as we work our way out of this pandemic, we must all continue our work to suppress the virus in Scotland. This means rigorously complying with the restrictions where we live and making sure we continue to wear face coverings, maintain 2m distance from others outside our own household and wash our hands regularly.
“These three strands – following all we need to do to suppress the virus, using our expanded testing programme to identify cases and break chains of transmission and rolling out vaccination as fast as supplies allow – are the three critical actions that will see us move, step by step, to a brighter year ahead.”
Associate Director of Public Health Dr Daniel Chandler, Immunisations Co-ordinator, who is overseeing the roll out of the COVID-19 vaccination programme in Tayside said: “The efforts of our vaccination teams have been amazing and it is testament to a real whole team approach that sees the first over-80s in the general population have their jabs today in Tayside.
“The availability and mobility of the Oxford Astrazeneca vaccine gives us the opportunity to start to roll out the biggest vaccine programme that the UK has ever seen across our communities. Over-80s are the first priority group and patients will be contacted directly to attend a vaccination session.
“Today’s commencement of the community roll-out marks an important next phase in our response to COVID-19. It will act to suppress the virus in our communities to protect those who are most vulnerable, but the plea from all of us in the NHS is keep sticking with all the guidance.”
James Shaw (82), who was one of the first to be vaccinated alongside his wife Malita, also 82, said: “My wife and I are delighted to be receiving this vaccination. I have asthma and bronchitis and I have been desperate to have it so I am really pleased to be one of the first to be getting it.
“I know it takes a little while for the vaccine to work but after today I know that I will feel a bit less worried about going out. I will still be very careful and avoid busy places but knowing I have been vaccinated will really help me.
“All of my friends have said they are going to have the vaccine when it is their turn and I would encourage everyone who is offered this vaccination to take it.”