Covid-19 vaccinations will take place in Brightlingsea on Friday January 29 for around 300 residents aged 80 and over who remain to be treated.
The vaccinations will be carried out by the Colne Medical Centre at its Station Road surgery using the Astra Zeneca vaccine, which has less stringent storage requirements than the Pfizer-Biontech version that some over-80s from the town have received at centres in Colchester and Clacton. Around 50 elderly patients who are housebound will also be treated on the same day.
All patients will be called by the centre’s staff in order to book an appointment or arrange a visit. The centre stressed that patients must have an appointment as the vaccinations cannot be carried out on a walk-in basis. Those attending are urged to:
- Arrive no more than 5 minutes early to avoid causing long queues
- Wear a mask
- Write your next of kin/ emergency contact down on a piece of paper (this will speed up the booking process)
- Wear loose clothing so that your upper arm can be easily exposed
- Bring an umbrella if it is raining.
- A note for the next priority groups
“Please be patient. Arranging vaccine clinics, sourcing vaccine supply, organising additional staffing and adhering to enhanced infection control guidance whilst keeping normal services running for our community is not a simple process. It is however, something that all the staff at Colne Medical Centre are passionate about and are keen to proceed with and hope to continue,” said practice manager Katie Pirie.
Once the town’s population of over-80s has been treated, the centre hopes that it will be able to move on to other age groups, but details cannot be confirmed until supplies of vaccine – which has to be used on the day it is delivered to the practice – can be secured.
