Steady as she goes

It’s been a couple of weeks since I last posted and vaccinations are continuing at a steady, if not spectacular pace. We are generally operating at between a thirty to sixty percent capacity most days.

My shifts as lead were mostly unremarkable. In the same vein as see one, do one, teach one for vaccine administration, I was shadowed on both shifts by staff who, in their turn, were taking the lead later in the week.

In late March we started to contact individuals who we had previously not vaccinated due to their history of allergies or anaphylaxis to reschedule their appointments. Our local policy has reverted closer to our original one where most people, unless they have a very specific anaphylactic history, can be vaccinated at QMU. This change of policy has caused some confusion and even consternation at times with both staff and the public, but we are operating in a fast moving environment where changes will be required from time to time.

We are also now getting some clinical and practical information through on the Moderna vaccine which should be available for use soon in Lothian although we have no knowledge yet as to whether it will be administered at the QMU site. The vaccine is an mRNA one and is largely similar in mode of action to the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine but does not require reconstitution (dilution with 0.9% normal saline) or storage at quite such extreme temperatures (only -25°C to -15°C as opposed to -80°C to -60°C!).

As announced nationally we expect vaccine availability to be somewhat lower over April and for there to be a shift away from first doses to second doses. It will be interesting to hear tales of how individuals reacted to their first dose and how that makes them feel for their second.

Incidentally I have not been offered a training place for the Children’s Panel this year but will probably reapply in the next recruitment round.