Agenda item

To receive the seasonal vaccine update.

Helen Clark, BOB ICB, presented an update on seasonal vaccines.

During the discussion of this item the following points were made:

·       The current Covid vaccination programme was focused on over 65s, those in care homes, younger patients in clinical risk groups, carers and those living with people who had a weakened immune system.  There were approximately 61,000 patients in these cohorts in the Borough.

·       The vaccination programme was being delivered through a combination of 5 sites run by the Primary Care Networks (PCNs) and supported by 3 pharmacy sites.  Wokingham Hospital was acting as a hub providing vaccinations for staff working in health and social care.

·       Just under 56% of eligible people had been vaccinated.  Across the PCNs uptake varied between 50-63%.  Across BOB the uptake was just over 51%, currently the highest in the South East region.  The official uptake target was 72%. 

·       There were still differences in uptake amongst different groups of people although less data was available in the current tranche of the programme.  One of the areas with the greatest level of variation was ethnicity.  At a BOB level, uptake ranged between 56.53% in the White British Group and 11.58% in the Pakistani group.  A lot of work was focused on outreach, targeted work, to understand some of the barriers to taking up the vaccination.

·       With regards to flu vaccinations, these were primarily focused on over 65’s, younger people in clinical risk groups and health and social care workers.  All of the GP practices had signed up to provide flu clinics and many had run these in conjunction with Covid clinics.

·       There was no published data available on the flu vaccination uptake yet, but it was believed that uptake was similar to that of previous years and no major issues had been identified with the programme.  There was a particular push around the vaccination of 2-3 year olds and pregnant women.

·       Communication and engagement work included work on social media and standard media.  For example, information had been placed on bus stops on the Reading and Wokingham bus routes.  Work had also been undertaken to liaise with community groups such as CLASP.

·       A Member commented that a graph regarding Covid vaccine uptake to date was unhelpful.  He questioned the uptake against availability of vaccinations.  Helen Clark indicated that feedback from the PCNs suggested that the response from patients had been good where clinics had been offered.  People should ideally be able to access a vaccine within a radius of 20 minutes.

·       A Member indicated that the Wokingham Borough had a large population of residents from Hong Kong and asked if a breakdown of uptake by ethnicity at a Wokingham Borough level could be provided.  Helen Clark responded the data was currently only available at BOB level regarding ethnicity but some differences in the granularity of the data produced by the national system in this phase of the programme compared to earlier phases, was being seen.  She would ascertain whether an ethnicity breakdown at the Borough level would be possible, and flag up the large Hong Kong population within the Borough.

·       In response to a Member question regarding whether there was any reluctance amongst patients to take up the vaccines if they were unable to attend the clinics offered at their local surgeries, Helen Clark indicated that generally uptake levels compared well with national levels.  Feedback from the PCNs suggested that this was not a significant issue.

·       Members asked about targeting hard to reach communities.  Helen Clark commented that this had been an ongoing theme since the start of the Covid vaccination programme, and was also seen nationally.  A multi-pronged approach was being taken and outreach workers were linking in with particular groups or targeted to particular areas with the lowest uptake.  There was still a lot of work to be undertaken.

·       Members were of the view that the programmes were working well and noted that the surgeries were contacting eligible patients regarding the vaccinations.

·       A Member questioned whether all Members should be asked whether they had taken up their relevant vaccinations.

·       In response to a Member question as to whether any feedback had been received as to why people may not be choosing to take up the vaccinations, Helen Clark responded that large volumes of concerns had not been received.  A Member suggested that some vaccine fatigue was starting to be seen and Helen Clark said this was possible and also agreed that some attitudes may be changing towards Covid.  Campaigns and winter work continued to focus on the importance of taking up vaccinations where eligible.  Infection rates were starting to increase.

·       A Member questioned whether the Health on the Move van would be going out in the community again and was informed that the van was not operating in the same way as previously, but fixed outreach clinics were being offered.

RESOLVED:  That Helen Clark be thanked for her presentation and the update on seasonal vaccines be noted.