12 May 2021 - Hywel Dda vaccine bulletin - Issue 18

Welcome to issue 18 of Hywel Dda University Health Board’s Vaccine Bulletin.

This weekly update will provide the latest information regarding the progress of the COVID-19 Mass Vaccination Programme across Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire.

It has been yet another successful week for the COVID-19 Vaccination Programme across Wales, over 2.8 million COVID-19 vaccinations administered to date. Here in Hywel Dda UHB, over 60% of our population have now received a first vaccine dose and 27% of our population is fully vaccinated.

On Friday 7 May, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) updated their expert advice and, as a precautionary measure, those under 40 years of age with no clinical risk factors who are not yet vaccinated, should be offered an alternate to the AstraZeneca vaccine.

All adults aged 18 to 29 living in Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire will be booked into our mass vaccination centres to receive either a Pfizer or Moderna vaccine and this updated advice should not lead to a delay in our vaccine roll out. We are continuing to work towards the third milestone set out in the Welsh Governments's COVID-19 Vaccination Strategy (opens in new tab), which is to offer a vaccine to everyone aged 18 and over by 31st July 2021.

Everybody who has already had a first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine should be reassured that they should receive a second dose of the same brand, irrespective of age, in line with JCVI advice. Medical exemptions may apply to a very small minority.

The AstraZeneca vaccine has already saved thousands of lives and remains safe and effective for the majority of the population. Over 1.2million people have received the AstraZeneca vaccine in Wales since January, with very few cases of the rare clotting with thrombocytopenia event.

Vaccines remain the best way out of this pandemic and provide strong protection against COVID-19 – it is important that when people are called forward, they should get their vaccination. It is also just as important that people come for the second dose to complete that protection. Every vaccination really does count.

Visit Public Health Wales' website for more information and FAQS (opens in new tab)

How to contact us if you haven’t received an invite:

If you are aged over 30 or in the JCVI priority groups 1 to 9 and have not received a first vaccine appointment, please request one as soon as possible by completing this online request form (opens in new tab). We understand that not everyone will have internet access. If you or someone you know is unable to complete our online request form, please call the health board on 0300 303 8322. Please share this message with friends, family and your local community to ensure no one is left behind.
If you are aged 16 or over and a household contact of a severely immunosuppressed adult (gov.uk, opens in new tab), please complete the self referral form on the NHS website (opens in new tab).

The JCVI do not currently advise vaccinating children who are household contacts. They also do not currently advise vaccinating household contacts of immunosuppressed children.

Please do not contact the health board if you are in group 10 and aged 18 to 29 to ask about your vaccine appointment at this time. You will be contacted as soon as it is your turn.

Priority Group	First dose vaccine numbers	First dose percentage uptake	Second dose vaccine numbers	Second dose percentage uptake
P1.1 - Older adult resident in a care home	2,489	96.4%	2,074	80.4%
P1.2 - Care home worker	3,431	98.2%	2,981	85.3%
P2.1 - All those 80 years of age and over	22,812	99.8%	21,006	91.9%
P2.2 & 2.3 - Health and social care workers	25,468	99.7%	21,688	84.9%
P3 - All those 75 years of age and over	18,593	95.3%	17,499	89.7%
P4.1 - All those 70 years of age	24,966	94.9%	21,842	83.1%
P4.2 - Clinically extremely vulnerable individuals  under 70 years of age	8,643	87.3%	7,126	72%
5. All those 65 years of age and over	21,573	90.3%	7,367	30.8%
6. All individuals aged 16 years to 64 years with underlying health conditions which put them at higher risk of serious disease and mortality (at risk groups)	37,475	84%	2,515	5.6%
7. All those 60 years of age and over	13,286	68.3%	496	2.5%
8. All those 55 years of age and over	14,669	78.9%	452	2.4%
9. All those 50 years of age and over	14,222	87.5%	465	2.9%
10. Priority group 10 or unallocated	28,836	18.7%	944	0.6%
Total:	236,464	61.1%	106,455	27.5%

Please don’t contact your GP, pharmacy or health board to ask when you will receive the vaccine
This week, health services have been inundated with calls, emails and social media messages from the public enquiring about the vaccine. We understand people are anxious and want to know when they can have the vaccine. Please do not contact your GP, pharmacy or health board; you will be contacted when it is your turn. People will be invited to receive the vaccine in order of priority, so please be patient.