Latest vaccination figures for Shropshire: Rates increasing but number of jabs down among over-65s and children
Vaccination rates are increasing in Shropshire, but there is more to do.
That was the assessment of Shropshire Council's health chief as she presented the latest figures to the Health and Wellbeing Board.
The current NHS flu vaccination uptake programme started on September 1 for pregnant women and children and young people, with the rest of the eligible population able to book from October 1.
As of October 20, just over 30 per cent of eligible people (88,803) had a flu vaccination, with the most-vaccinated group being anyone aged 65 and over (48.5 per cent). That is still some way from the 82 per cent target for Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin.
The smallest groups are primary and secondary school aged children, with just 9.4 per cent and 7.9 per cent having been vaccinated respectively. However, board members were told there has been an issue collating all of the data, and work is being undertaken to understand why figures are so low when many schools have started vaccinating.
Summing up the overall picture, Rachel Robinson, executive director for health at Shropshire Council, said: “Our rates are increasing, and are nearly back to the levels we were at last year.
“We are close to achieving our ambitions around immunisation of flu uptake.
“However, having said that, over-65s for flu are down, so we want to encourage people to get their vaccinations. We have seen an increase in our healthcare workers’ uptake. But as we head towards winter, the message is always ‘having your immunisation vaccinations is something that does help protect you and your loved ones’.”
Nigel Lee, director of strategy and partnerships at the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH), said the vaccination update at the trust is “already well ahead of last year”, but leaders know there’s plenty more to do.
Councillor Bernie Bentick, the chair of the Health and Wellbeing Board, said he wanted to endorse the message “get yourself vaccinated if you are eligible”.
“It’s not just yourselves – it’s our loved ones, our neighbours, the frail, the elderly,” said Councillor Bentick.
“There is a community aspect to this, and additionally, the more people who are vaccinated against respiratory illnesses, the fewer will come to the accident and emergency departments of our hard-pressed healthcare services.”
Meanwhile, a total of 31,057 Covid vaccines had been administered as of October 20, as well as 20,695 for respiratory syncytial virus.
