Three weeks ago News OnTheWight reported that 38 and 39-year-olds were having difficulty getting their Covid-19 jabs on the Isle of Wight. This was despite being invited to make appointments to do so.
As the weeks have gone by, more age groups have been invited to book a jab, but many are finding it impossible to get one on the Isle of Wight. Some have travelled to Portsmouth, others have had no choice but to wait.
It’s been widely recognised that with the help of a strong army of volunteers, the clinical team at the Riverside Vaccination Centre are doing a fantastic job of vaccinating thousands of people each week, but can only work with what they have got.
Pfizer jabs at Riverside?
Last week News OnTheWight heard on the QT that the team at Riverside were gearing up to start administering the Pfizer vaccine. We asked Solent NHS Trust about it.
A spokesperson replied,
“We continue to work closely with our partners to increase the number of alternative vaccinations to Astra Zeneca available on the Isle of Wight for the small number of eligible people aged under 40 who have not yet received the vaccine.
“We will provide more details as soon as we have more information and thank residents for their continued patience.”
NHS confirm alternative is coming
This week the Isle of Wight NHS Trust confirmed that an alternative to the Oxford/Astrazeneca vaccine would soon be arriving at the Riverside Vaccination Centre.
They tweeted this reply to Islander James Fothergill, who is worried about the lack of vaccines for his age group.
We’ll update you once we hear more.
Image: Hyttalo Souza under CC BY 2.0
