Wirral's independent local news website
The NHS COVID-19 vaccination bus was at Victoria Park, Rock Ferry this morning, offering walk-in vaccinations to Wirral residents.
The bus, which is fully accessible, will also be at Turner Street car park, Birkenhead on 14 and 15 July, between 9.30am-6pm, and offers a safe, self-contained, clean location for people to have their vaccine.
The idea behind having mobile units is to give access to vaccinations to people who may not be registered with a GP, or due to work and home commitments may not be able to keep a scheduled appointment, or simply find themselves with a bit of spare time so they can pop in and get their first or second jab.
birkenhead.news went to Victoria Park and spoke to Dr. Abhi Mantgani who is a GP at the Miriam Centre in Birkenhead and Clinical Lead for the Vaccination Service at Birkenhead Medical Building.
Dr. Mantgani said,
In Wirral and around the country, we’ve done fantastically well in getting over 70% of the population vaccinated. But, to get the best benefit, we need to reach out to those communities where the uptake is lower than average.So, we have changed the policy from appointment only to walk-ins at the Miriam Centre and also, we’re using the bus, which is great, because it reaches the communities where the number of vaccinations are lower.It means that people who don’t have transport, who have concerns about getting the vaccination in a GP practice and this leads to some hesitency. Bringing the service to their doorstep means that so many people can get the vaccination and the more people that are vaccinated, leads to the whole population being protected.
In Wirral and around the country, we’ve done fantastically well in getting over 70% of the population vaccinated. But, to get the best benefit, we need to reach out to those communities where the uptake is lower than average.
So, we have changed the policy from appointment only to walk-ins at the Miriam Centre and also, we’re using the bus, which is great, because it reaches the communities where the number of vaccinations are lower.
It means that people who don’t have transport, who have concerns about getting the vaccination in a GP practice and this leads to some hesitency. Bringing the service to their doorstep means that so many people can get the vaccination and the more people that are vaccinated, leads to the whole population being protected.
The vaccination bus has been in Victoria Park Monday 12 and Tuesday 13 and despite the fact that the weather was very poor on the Monday, over 230 people had their first or second jabs because as Dr. Mantgani said, it is very convenient way for residents to get their vaccinations.
Today, there was a steady flow of people attending and due to the efficient operation, they were registered, vaccinated, and exitying the bus in a matter of minutes. birkenhead.news spoke to one young person about their experience. A young lady named Cheryl said, “I had my first jab today and when I went online to see where to get vaccinated, this was the nearest place that came up. It was nice and easy and I would recommend other people to use the vaccine bus.”
The bus will also be at Turner Street car park, Birkenhead on Wednesday 14 and Thursday 15 July, between 9.30am-6pm, and offers a safe, self-contained, clean location for people to have their vaccine.
The bus will be in Bromborough next week and the Miriam Centre is offering walk-in vaccinations on Mondays to Saturdays between 9am and 5pm on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays and between 9am and 6:30pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
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