Booster invitations and jabs for 12-15 year olds in North East start this week
Invitations to book a Covid booster jab are being sent to eligible people in the North East this week and at the same time NHS school aged vaccination services are gearing up to start as the NHS vaccination programme enters a new phase ahead of winter.
Texts allowing eligible people to arrange a top-up through the National Booking Service start today, with letters also being sent later this week.
Meanwhile, healthy 12-15 year olds where parents have provided consent, will start to receive their Covid-19 vaccine – with Excelsior Academy in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, being one of the first schools in the North East to start.
Booster jabs are effective for topping up protection for people who have had both of their jabs and are at least six months after their second dose.
Hospital hubs have already started vaccinating frontline health and care workers as well as identifying other eligible patients for their booster vaccine with GP-led local vaccination services already contacting eligible patients.
The NHS Covid Vaccination Programme for the North East and North Cumbria says it will ramp up action over the coming days as more vaccination centres and pharmacy-led clinics come online.
Covid booster jabs
Is the booster jab the same vaccine as my first two doses?
Is the booster jab the same vaccine as my first two doses?
It doesn't have to be the same vaccine that you have received before.In line with JCVI advice adults should receive either one dose of the Pfizer vaccine or half a dose of the Moderna vaccine, which means for some people their booster dose may be different from the vaccines they had for your 1st and 2nd dose.
People could also be offered a booster dose of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine if they cannot have the Pfizer/BioNTech or Moderna vaccine.
Am I eligible?
Am I eligible?
Those who are eligible for a booster include:
those living in residential care homes for older adults
all adults aged 50 years or over
frontline health and social care workers
all those aged 16 to 49 years with underlying health conditions that put them at higher risk of severe COVID-19 (as set out in the green book), and adult carers
adult household contacts of immunosuppressed individuals
You must have had your two doses at least six months before your booster jab.
Local health teams will prioritise care home residents and staff who are eligible and offer a booster jab by the beginning of November.
How do I book?
How do I book?
You no longer need to wait to be contacted. You can book an appointment online at www.nhs.uk/covid-vaccination at one of the convenient vaccine sites across the country. People that aren’t able go online can book by phoning 119.
School aged vaccination
Meanwhile, this week the NHS and local School Age Vaccination Services also begin vaccinating children aged 12-15.
Parents will receive letters, information about the vaccine and are encouraged to discuss the benefits and the risks of the vaccination with their children, so that they can make an informed decision.
Children will only be vaccinated in school when a parent or guardian has provided prior written consent. If this has not been provided the vaccination will not go ahead in school.
For those that miss the session or change their minds in future, mop up sessions will be provided.
The Excelsior Academy on Denton Road in Newcastle will be the first school in the North East and North Cumbria to offer vaccinations from Wednesday 22 September.