Over 7,000 COVID vaccinations have been given across Birmingham and Solihull in the first week of the national drive.
Demand has been exceptionally high across Birmingham and Solihull for the autumn COVID booster, with a total of 7,364 eligible members of the public getting vaccinated at local venues to get protected.
The COVID boosters have been delivered across local vaccination sites in primary care, such as GP practices and pharmacies, and on site in care homes and other care settings.
The national booking system, available via the NHS website, is now open for other eligible citizens to book for their own vaccinations, with a number of locations offering appointments across Birmingham and Solihull.
If citizens don’t see the vaccination location they were hoping to get their vaccination from, they are encouraged to check back regularly as the system will be updated over the coming weeks with even more locations.
787 vaccines have also been given by NHS Birmingham and Solihull’s roving vaccination team, who have been taking their mobile vaccination van to popular community sites across the cities.
Our mobile offer is an innovative way of bringing an accessible option into the community and offering vaccines to eligible citizens in areas they know as their own community.
Look out for the mobile units as they will be deployed across Birmingham and Solihull throughout winter, offering vaccines to those who are eligible, as well as sharing general wellbeing advice on how to stay well this winter.
If you are visiting Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Good Hope Hospital, Birmingham Heartlands or Solihull Hospital, to see relatives or have an outpatient appointment, vaccination appointments or walk ins will also be available on site on certain days. Access times are listed on the Birmingham and Solihull vaccination website.
The Director of Immunisations and Vaccinations at NHS Birmingham and Solihull, Kate Woolley, said: “This is a fantastic start to this winter vaccination drive, and it is so important this winter, as we have another variant PIROLA in circulation.
“Our staff are encouraging as many eligible people as possible to get their vaccines.
“Recovery times for flu can be over eight weeks, and even longer for COVID, which is why we are strongly encouraging all eligible residents and patients to get that vital protection for winter.
“There are lots of different opportunities across Birmingham and Solihull to get vaccines, with more to come online in the coming weeks.”
We are strongly advising our frontline health and care staff and importantly informal carers to have their vaccinations.
Further information on local walk-in services, including the mobile vaccination unit, can be found on the Birmingham and Solihull vaccination website.
More information on who is eligible for a COVID booster vaccination can be found on the NHS website.
You can also find more information on the flu vaccine and those eligible on the NHS website too.