GPs in St Helens are expecting to receive the first batch of Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine later this week, as the borough’s infection rate continues to surge.

Over the next three days, patients who were given the Pfizer vaccine in December will be heading back to Saints’ Totally Wicked Stadium to receive their booster jab.

This is despite the government delaying the second dose of the Pfizer and the newly approved Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine by up to 12 weeks, in an effort to vaccinate more people.

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St Helens CCG said 975 doses of the Pfizer vaccine will be used for the second dose for the borough’s over-80s population.

A further batch of 90 doses of the Pfizer vaccine will be used to vaccinate care home residents and staff, which began last week.

St Helens CCG said it is expecting its first delivery of Oxford-AstraZeneca later this week, and said it is working hard with NHE England to secure further supplies.

This will enable the CCG to complete the vaccination of care home staff and residents, and those who are housebound, next week.

GPs are unable to vaccinate housebound patients with the Pfizer vaccine as it is too fragile to transport to individual homes.

Further deliveries of vaccines will enable GPs to continue to roll out mass vaccinations to those in order of age and clinical risk.

However, the spokesman said this is all dependent on vaccines being delivered on time and the “robustness of the supply chain”.

The UK government has secured 100 million doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, enough to vaccinate around 50 million people.

The expected delivery of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine comes as infection rates across the Liverpool City Region continue to rise at an alarming rate.

St Helens Star: Positive Covid cases are surging across the regoonPositive Covid cases are surging across the regoon

In the seven days up to January 4, St Helens’ infection rate jumped to 578.2 per 100,000 population.

In Knowsley, the seven-day infection rate was 944.7 during that time, the second highest in the city region.

In the Liverpool City Regions as a whole, the infection rate has jumped to 750.1 cases per 100,000 population.

To vaccinate people as quickly as possible, NHS chiefs in Merseyside are looking to recruit more staff to work at large vaccination sites in a variety of locations, starting in St Helens.

There are a wide range of clinical and non-clinical roles available to suit people with a variety of skills. You can apply for more than one role.

In all roles, appropriate training, supervision, and PPE will be provided to ensure the safety of staff, volunteers, and patients.

There are a wide range of fixed term contracts and casual worker agreements available, including:

  • Clinical Supervisor (St Helens)
  • Vaccinator (RHCP) (St Helens)
  • Vaccinator (St Helens)
  • Vaccinator Support HCA (St Helens)
  • Vaccination Support Administration (St Helens)
  • Admin Support (Front of House) (St Helens)
  • Volunteer Marshal (St Helens)

For more information about the vaccination, visit sthelensccg.nhs.uk