By Lucy Ashton
All l mainland health boards will offer drop-in coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccination clinics from Monday as the programme nears completion of first doses for all adults in Scotland.
For local folk there’s a facility at Dumbarton FC’s Rock Stadium on Tuesday (July 6).
Everyone aged 18 and over can attend for their first dose or – if eight weeks have passed – their second dose. Separate queues will be in operation for those with a scheduled appointment.
From Monday, mobile vaccination units run by the Scottish Ambulance Service will visit local communities and busy city centre spots in Edinburgh and Glasgow for a two week period.
Anyone who has not yet received an invitation or would like to rearrange an existing appointment can continue to self-register on the NHS Inform site.
Health Secretary Humza Yousaf, pictured left, said: “Our route out of this pandemic is getting as many people vaccinated as quickly as possible, that is why I am urging people to get jagged in July. The vaccination programme continues to progress at pace and, as always, I want to thank everyone involved and all those who have taken up the offer of vaccine.
“As we approach the final stages of the first COVID-19 vaccination programme we are increasing the options available for how and when you choose to be inoculated.
“You can attend one of the drop-in clinics being run in all mainland health boards or pop into a mobile unit. You can also rearrange the location of your appointment online if, for example, it is more convenient for you to be vaccinated closer to your work than home.
“You can find out where your nearest drop-in clinics are by visiting NHS Inform which will direct you to the latest information from your local health board.
“All those aged 18 and over can also self-register to receive their appointment by text or email which will be convenient for anyone who has recently moved house or is new to Scotland.
“All of the evidence says that the vaccines are working as we continue to battle the faster-transmitting Delta variant which is now dominant so I urge everyone to take advantage of the vaccination programme which is open to every adult in Scotland.”
Responding to the news that walk-in vaccination centres will be available everywhere in mainland Scotland from Monday, Scottish Liberal Democrat health spokesperson Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP said: “With the virus running rampant it’s worrying that it has taken the Scottish Government such a long time to get this up and running. London has had walk-in clinics for several weeks now.
“Scottish Liberal Democrats have repeatedly advocated for more walk-in vaccination centres so this is a step in the right direction.
“However, the vaccine rollout is only half the story during this surge. The government remains silent on how it will end the mounting delays in contact tracing. It should never have reached the point of needing to turn off some tracing activities altogether because of a lack of capacity. Ministers need to tell us whether they have any reinforcements available for such a surge or whether they have taken their eye off the ball.”
Meanwhile, an additional £380 million is being allocated to Health Boards to help with costs arising from the pandemic.
This comes on top of the £1.7 billion already provided to Health Boards and Health and Social Care Partnerships last year. Further financial support will be made available as necessary over the course of this year.
This additional funding includes ongoing support for the vaccination programme, the Test and Protect system, and personal protective equipment (PPE) for health and care workers.
Health Secretary Humza Yousaf said: “Although we are hopefully emerging from this pandemic, coronavirus continues to add significant pressures to our health and care services. We will continue to assess the impact of COVID-19 and provide Health and Care services with the support they require. The remobilisation of the NHS is among our top priorities. We will publish a national recovery plan within the first 100 days of this government.
“The £380 million includes £90.3 million for Test and Protect, a further £76.8 million for the COVID and extended flu vaccination programmes, and £85.5 million allocated to National Services Scotland for PPE costs. The rest of the funding will cover costs including additional staffing to support hospital scale-up, equipment, maintenance and IT.”
* The 2021-22 Scottish Budget takes total health portfolio funding in excess of £16 billion – an increase of over £800 million (5.3%) – with a further £1.08 billion of funding to address pressures related to COVID-19. NHS Inform self-registration
Information on drop-in clinics
Vaccination bus schedule:
5 July Mecca Bingo, Glasgow Forge
6 July Dumbarton Football Club
7 July Govan Housing Association
8 July Partick Thistle Football Club
9 July St Roch’s Secondary School car park, Royston