More vaccine centres set to go live from today
Another 14 vaccination sites are going live across Suffolk and north-east Essex from today - Credit: Charlotte Bond
The next wave of Covid jab sites go live today, with sources indicating the area's health service is confident of meeting the prime minister's target of vaccinating the "top four priority groups" by mid-February.
After the first sites went live in December, 14 more will open in Suffolk and north Essex from Monday ready for the next stage of the roll-out.
However, it is expected that appointments will not begin until mid-week onwards, as supplies arrive at each location.
A patient being vaccinated at the Two Rivers Medical Centre in Ipswich - Credit: Archant
Prime minister Boris Johnson has said he wants the top four priority groups to get the first dose of the jab by the middle of next month.
Top priority are care home residents and staff, with the over-80s and frontline health and social care workers next in line.
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The over-75s are the third highest priority group, while over-70s and clinically extremely vulnerable people are in the fourth group.
The only age group currently being vaccinated are those aged 80 and over.
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In north-east Essex, the Fryatt Hospital in Harwich will be a vaccine centre.
In Suffolk, the sites are:
- Debenham Leisure Centre
- Jubilee Centre, Mildenhall
- Constable Country Medical Practice, East Bergholt
- The EPIC centre, Haverhill Research Park
- Hadleigh Health Centre
- Hardwicke House Surgery Cornard branch, Sudbury
- Lavenham branch, Long Melford Surgery
- Saxmundham Health
- Sizewell Sports & Social Club, Leiston
- The Grove Medical Centre, Felixstowe
- The Mix, Stowmarket
- Trinity Park Conference Centre, Ipswich
- Woodbridge Community Hall
The Grove Medical Centre in Felixstowe is one of 14 sites across the region going live from today - Credit: Archant
Dr Dan Poulter, MP for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich, who has worked on the NHS frontline throughout the pandemic, said: “It’s good news that the vaccination effort is now being stepped up in Suffolk and within the next few weeks all health and care workers as well as older and more vulnerable people can be protected against the virus.
“It is vitally important that everyone has the vaccine and people ignore the dangerous and ignorant pseudo-science of the anti-vaccination movement.
"The vaccine is the only way to provide protection against Covid and our only chance for a return to ‘normal’ life later in the year.”
Dr Dan Poulter MP has urged Suffolk residents to get their vaccination done as soon as it is available to them - Credit: Archant
Three vaccines have now been approved for use in the UK - the one by Pfizer BioNTech, the Oxford-AstraZeneca jab and most recently the Moderna vaccine.
It is expected supplies of the Oxford-AstraZeneca jab will soon become more available across the country, because the government has been producing doses since before it was approved in the hopes it would be a 'game changer' for the UK.
