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Agenda item

Vaccination programme update

Minutes:

The Board considered a presentation from Jo Reeves (Agenda Item 5) relating to the Vaccination Programme. The main points from her presentation were as follows:

·         84.7% of the eligible population in West  Berkshire had received their first jab and 78.2% had received both doses. This was better than Berkshire West and Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West (BOB).

·         69.1% of 16-17 year olds in West Berkshire had received one dose of the vaccine. Again, this was better than the averages for Berkshire West and BOB.

·         Only 24.6% of 12-15 year olds in West Berkshire had been vaccinated. This was markedly lower than Wokingham (38.3%), but was higher than Reading (16.6%). This variance was thought to be related to the schedules of the school-based immunisation team, which covered the six Berkshire local authorities.

·         Boosters had been given to 25% of eligible care home residents across Berkshire West – data for individual local authorities was not available. This was lower than the average of 25% across BOB.

The Chairman asked why boosters could not be booked in advance. Jo Reeves offered to take that question away and report back.

The Chairman asked why Wokingham was faring so much better than West Berkshire in terms of vaccinating 12-15 year olds and when this gap would close. Jo Reeves offered to contact Ginnie Garnett to find out more about the vaccination team’s timetable.

Andy Sharp asked if there was data about vaccine declinations amongst young people. Jo Reeves offered to raise the question at the Berkshire West Vaccine Action Group. She suggested that take-up rates should increase now the mass-vaccination centres had opened up to 12-15 year olds.

Councillor Lynne Doherty noted that local performance was being compared to BOB, but suggested that it should also be compared against the national average. She was surprised at how far West Berkshire was behind in vaccinating 12-15 year olds and asked for more information on the vaccine opportunities in West Berkshire compared to those in Wokingham. She also noted that care home residents in West Berkshire were amongst the first to be vaccinated and expressed surprise that the booster rate was so low. She asked what was being done to address this. Jo Reeves explained that the CCG was challenging colleagues in the PCNs to provide schedules for when they would be going into Care Homes.

The Chairman noted that Reading and Wokingham were expressing similar concerns and officers were liaising on comms.

Councillor Jo Stewart asked if West Berkshire numbers could be provided for care home resident booster jabs. Jo Reeves undertook to share this once it was available.

Councillor Stewart also noted that delivery of booster vaccines appeared to be a bit ‘hit and miss’, and people may struggle to arrange an appointment if they had limited mobility or were in the later stages of dementia and their carer was not ‘tech savvy’. Jo Reeves explained that those who were house-bound would receive boosters at home. Also, people could call 119 rather than going online to book their vaccine and could be get details on accessible locations.

Councillor Alan Macro noted that residents would not be able to book their booster jab online until 6 months and one week after their second jab and agreed that this was an unnecessary delay. He also shared concerns expressed about the low vaccination rates in care homes, since these were the most vulnerable individuals. He asked if booster jabs would be delivered at the walk-in hub in the Kennet Centre. Jo Reeves confirmed that walk-ins would be accepted, but the hub had been over-subscribed, so booking was advised. She highlighted alternative options at Boots, Lambourn Pharmacy and Broad Street Mall.

The Chairman sought clarification that boosters would not be delivered to someone who was not eligible. Jo Reeves confirmed that was correct.

Councillor Steve Masters noted that there had been a very high positivity rate for Covid tests amongst young people and wondered if the need to leave 30 days between a positive diagnosis and getting the jab could be a reason for the low take-up. Matthew Pearce suggested that a relatively small number of children would be affected, but processes were in place to follow up with children who were unable to get their jab.

Councillor Masters also asked who administered the vaccines in schools and if they had sufficient staff. Jo Reeves confirmed that the School-Based Immunisation Team who were part of Berkshire Healthcare Foundation Trust, with support from Oxford Health Trust. She noted that the team was also delivering the flu programme, but they had sufficient staff.

Councillor Masters asked if there were guidelines for ensuring that eligible patients leaving hospital got their booster. Andy Sharp noted that the guidance about returning to care home settings remained unchanged and there was no requirement for patients to have a booster. He offered to provide a summary of the protocols to Board members outside the meeting.

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