Vaccination centre ready to help more people get jabbed

The latest Covid-19 vaccination centre to open in the region aims to increase the number of people getting vaccinated and get a big push on boosters across the Black Country.

The centre at the Saltwells Education Centre on Bowling Green Road in Netherton opened to the public on Wednesday, December 29, after data showed Netherton was an area with lower vaccine uptake than other parts of Dudley Borough.

The site has been stood up to help accelerate the booster programme across the Black Country and West Birmingham, with first, second, booster and third primary doses available to those eligible through appointments booked on the National Booking System.

The first day saw a steady number of people coming in, with the majority aged between 12 and 15 and getting their first jab.

Ruby Young from Wordsley was there with her mum Joanne to get her first jab and the 14-year-old said she was nervous about getting the vaccine, but knew it was the right time to do it.

She said: "They made me feel comfortable when I got here and the jab was fine, so I feel good for doing it and I know I'm able to keep my friends and family safe, so it was all worth it."

Duncan Jenkins, chief pharmacist at Dudley Integrated Health and Care NHS Trust said the trust had wanted a facility which could give a big push on boosters and vaccinations.

He said: "I think a centre like this can make a huge difference in terms of the emerging evidence that shows if you have a booster dose, it protects 75 percent of the population against Covid symptoms.

"It is really important that people get their booster doses, both to protect themselves and their friends and, most importantly, their family and older relatives.

"Our community pharmacists and our GPs have been working really hard to get people vaccinated, but we want to provide that extra push at this site."

Centre operations lead Helen Blakemore has been involved in getting the centre up and running, from planning the centre to construction and the staffing model for the site.

She said the site has been ordered at short notice, but said it was necessary for an area which needed a big vaccination centre.

She said: "We've got the capacity here to take on large numbers of people for all vaccinations, so we hope people will get booking online and come to get their vaccinations as required.

"What makes this centre a great place to get vaccinated is that it's all on ground level, so we have great access to facilities for wheelchair access and we are near a railway station and have excellent public transport links.

"We are a friendly and knowledgeable group at this site with a lot of expertise, so if you have any queries, we are here to answer your questions and concerns."

Karen Wright, Dudley’s director of public health and wellbeing, said the impact of the centre opening would be great as it would help give people every opportunity to get vaccinated.

She said: "The NHS has put in such a great effort to get this setup done so quickly and it's important as it follows on from the Black Country Living Museum, which acted as a mass vaccination centre.

"Vaccinations are going to be here for a long time and we want to make sure people have every opportunity to get it done and this is such a great location, being central and with free car parking.

"I think every centre can make an impact and, in Dudley, infection rates are over 1,000 people per 100,000 and we know the new variant is more transmissible, so it's important for this centre to be here.

"I'll be bringing my daughter here for her second vaccine in a few weeks and I expect the centre to be here for the next few weeks and then see what the future roll-out needs to be."