A DOCTOR at a large GP surgery has sent a candid message to patients about how their part in rolling out the Covid vaccine is affecting their routine work.

There is good news from Hagley Surgery that they are ramping up vaccinations next week and expect to do 2,500 jabs.

But there is also a warning that they cannot keep up their normal level of routine appointments.

Dr David Richards asked patients not to ring up about their vaccinations – ‘the vaccine will be coming to you very soon.”

He has also warned that the number of Covid cases locally is ‘rising rapidly.’

Hagley was one of the first surgeries to get the vaccine and before Christmas did 975 jabs in the week – but ‘unfortunately’ it got no deliveries over Christmas and the New Year.

This week it is on course to complete over 1,000. Their patients have been travelling to Stourport for the jab, but next week a second centre at Kidderminster means the surgery expect to vaccinate 2,500 patients.

And they are also hopeful that they will be able to do vaccinations using the Oxford vaccine at the Hagley surgery soon.

Top of the priority list are the over 80s and people in care homes.

In a special message via a video on Facebook Dr Richards reassured patients that there had been no serious adverse incidents or side effects after 1 million vaccinations nationwide, and also said both the Pfizer and Oxford vaccines were effective in providing protection.

But he also warned that people would need to keep following social distance guidelines and restrictions after vaccination because of the time to become immune and the fact that people might still be able to transmit the virus.

Because nurses and doctors were being diverted to vaccination work some routine work, such as health checks and blood tests or blood pressure tests were being ‘unfortunately delayed’ and ‘appointment availability is not as good as we would like it to be.’

The surgery is trying to minimize face to face contact and some patients’ minor problems could probably wait until Covid cases started to fall, he said. “Please bear with us. We are trying our best. Keep socially distancing and stay safe.”

The video is at: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1116871928761970&id=111704820424771