COVID AUTUMN BOOSTER CAMPAIGN 2023/24
Clair Hall Vaccination Clinics
NEWTONS PATIENTS ONLY:
Please book your Covid vaccine via the National Booking Service.
Covid vaccine update:
The final day of the autumn vaccination programme, and our last clinic at Clair Hall, is on Friday 15th December. The clinic time is 0900-1300 and there is still capacity for patients to book an appointment via the NHS website or by calling 119. We will accept walk-ins although capacity will be limited.
You will be able to book your appointment via the National Booking Service after the 18th September https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/covid-19-services/covid-19-vaccination-services/book-covid-19-vaccination/
Flu vaccine update:
Flu vaccines will now be done at the Practice for patients who are eligible - you can book an appointment online for your flu vaccine if you are eligible - aged over 65yrs, have a chronic disease such as diabetes, COPD, are pregnant or are a carer or frontline health worker.
Am I eligible for an autumn 2023 Covid booster?
The following people are eligible for an autumn Covid booster:
Flu eligibility:
The below groups will be eligible for a flu vaccine (School age children will have their vaccine at school, 2/3yr olds at the surgery) :
- those aged 65 years and over
- those aged 6 months to under 65 years in clinical risk groups (as defined by the Green Book, chapter 19 (Influenza))
- pregnant women
- all children aged 2 or 3 years on 31 August 2023
- primary school aged children (from Reception to Year 6)
- those in long-stay residential care homes [footnote 1]
- carers in receipt of carer’s allowance, or those who are the main carer of an elderly or disabled person
- close contacts of immunocompromised individuals
- frontline workers in a social care setting without an employer led occupational health scheme including those working for a registered residential care or nursing home, registered domiciliary care providers, voluntary managed hospice providers and those that are employed by those who receive direct payments (personal budgets) or Personal Health budgets, such as Personal Assistants
The NHS uses various systems to book your Covid-19 Vaccination but we will never ask you for bank details to confirm your identity and the vaccine will always be free. If you receive a letter / email or text asking for your bank details, it is a scam.
We kindly ask you not to call the surgery about your Covid-19 Vaccination as we need to keep the lines open for urgent patient enquiries during this busy time. For those not online, you can call 119.
COVID-19 vaccination status
The NHS COVID Pass lets you share your coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccination records or test COVID-19 status in a secure way. It allows you to show others the details of your COVID-19 vaccine (or vaccines) when travelling abroad to some countries or territories.
COVID-19 vaccination status is available to people who live in England. You can get your vaccination status in digital or paper format. You can access your COVID-19 vaccination status through the free NHS App.
If you do not have access to a smartphone and require a COVID-19 vaccination status, you can call the NHS helpline on 119 and ask for a letter to be posted to you. This must be at least 5 days after you’ve completed your course of the vaccine. We expect the letter to take up to 5 days to reach you.
Please do not contact your GP surgery about your COVID-19 vaccination status. GPs cannot provide letters showing your COVID-19 vaccination status.
More information available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/nhs-covid-pass
Visit https://www.gov.uk/guidance/demonstrating-your-covid-19-vaccination-status-when-travelling-abroad for more information with regards to travelling abroad.
We have received a high number of requests to enter details of a COVID vaccine onto our patients’ GP records and the NHS app, when a vaccination has been given somewhere other than with ourselves.
We appreciate that this is a confusing situation.
Currently, it is not possible for us to record details of COVID vaccines in such a way that it will appear on the NHS app. The vaccine information which appears on the NHS App is taken from the IT systems used in the vaccine centres around the country, not a patient’s GP records.
Vaccines received in the UK
If you have had a vaccine in the UK through another provider and it is not showing on the NHS App, it’s likely that there has been some kind of problem at the vaccine clinic. Either it was not entered correctly onto the IT system, or the IT system has failed to upload it onto the NHS App. If you are in this situation, please contact the centre where you received your COVID vaccine or the VDRS. The Vaccine Data Resolution Service (VDRS) aims to resolve missing or incorrect vaccination records for people vaccinated in England who have a current NHS number and are registered with a GP practice in England. This can be accessed by calling 119 and asking to be referred to the Vaccine Data Resolution Service. The VDRS team will then call you back within 5 working days.
Vaccines received outside the UK
If you received either one or both of your vaccine doses outside of the UK, we can enter this onto your GP record. It would be useful for us to have this information on your health records, and you can send it to us by submitting an eConsultation asking for administrative help on our website. You can attach a photo of any documents you have relating to the vaccine (including the manufacturer and the date it was given). However, at present, this information will not appear on the NHS app.
Please go to Logging Covid Vaccines administered abroad. This will allow you to book an appointment to arrange to have your vaccine details entered onto the National Immunisation Management System (NIMS) and therefore visible on the NHS App.
Any queries regarding this issue need to be directed to NHS 119 or to NHS App Support rather than the GP Practice
Please do not come to the practice if you are suffering from a cold, cough and/or fever unless you have been advised to by one of our doctors.
Please use the following link for advice regarding self-isolation and treatment if you have Coronavirus or symptoms of Coronavirus:
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/self-isolation-and-treatment
Face-coverings: Please use the following link to access government advice regarding face-coverings, including information for patients who feel they may be exempt:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/face-coverings-when-to-wear-one-and-how-to-make-your-own/face-coverings-when-to-wear-one-and-how-to-make-your-own
Flu is a viral infection that usually strikes between December and March. It can affect people of all ages.
It is NOT a cold! It is much more than a heavy cold.
You can catch flu by inhaling the virus or by handling items touched by an infected person. The symptoms start to develop one to four days later. It makes you feel completely exhausted and the extreme fatigue may last for one or two weeks.
Don't let Flu affect you this winter
I