Covid 19 – Vaccination Toolkit – Edition 3

Dear colleagues and community representatives,

NHS Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) recognises the role you have in engaging with and supporting communities across Nottingham and Nottinghamshire. We would like to request your assistance, as community leaders, in sharing important messages regarding the COVID-19 vaccine with your community groups and networks. You may have received several different messages regarding the COVID-19 vaccine already. We have produced this toolkit to provide you and your communities with the most up-to-date information regarding the vaccine. Information within this toolkit can also be referred to when responding to enquiries you may receive from your community members. Please do share this toolkit and content widely.

Kindly note that the information in this toolkit is accurate as of Friday 5th February 2021. This toolkit may be produced on a regular basis to keep you updated with new information. If you wish to unsubscribe from receiving this toolkit, you can do so by clicking the ‘unsubscribe’ button at the bottom of this page.

We thank you in advance for your assistance and support.

Kindest Regards,
NHS Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Clinical Commissioning Group

Priority for the vaccination is care home residents and staff, people over the age of 70, those who are Clinically Extremely Vulnerable and frontline health and care workers.

The NHS will contact people in the priority groups when it is their turn to receive the vaccine. Priority groups are based on the guidance from the Joint Committee for Vaccinations and Immunisations. Be aware of COVID-19 vaccination fraud by reading more on the CCG website.

Over 70s
All over 70s have been contacted to receive their vaccination. There are a number of different ways to receive a vaccination:

1. Local hospital services – you might be contacted either to have the vaccine as an inpatient or at an outpatient appointment.

2. Local vaccination services – vaccination services in your area are working to offer the vaccine to as many people as possible.

3. Through your care home – GPs and their teams are also arranging to vaccinate care home residents directly, in their homes.

4. A letter from the NHS Covid-19 Vaccination Booking Service to book online or by phone. Booking through this service will give you the option of having the vaccine at a special Vaccination Centre, or potentially a community pharmacy depending on whether these are available locally. It is important to note that the public will only receive a letter from the NHS Covid-19 Vaccination Booking Service if they live within 30-45 minutes from one of these sites. Some residents may receive this letter to invite them for vaccination at Mansfield Vaccination Centre. It is also important to note anyone who receives a national letter, can wait for their local letter if more convenient.

Letters provide information on what you should do if you require transport. Text or phone calls may be received if vaccinations are available towards the end of the day.

All booking lines for Covid-19 vaccine appointments are now open to over 70s across Nottingham and Nottinghamshire.

If you have not received your letter, you can now book your appointments via the local booking system: https://www.swiftqueue.co.uk/nottinghamc19vpatient.php or by calling 0115 883 4640 between 9am and 5pm.

Clinically Extremely Vulnerable
Anyone under the age of 70 classed as Clinically Extremely Vulnerable (CEV) across Nottingham and Nottinghamshire has been sent a letter inviting them to book their Covid-19 vaccination appointment.

To read more about the COVID-19 vaccinations for Clinically Extremely Vulnerable people, please click here.

To book an appointment, Clinically Extremely Vulnerable people can use the local booking link: https://www.swiftqueue.co.uk/nottinghamc19v-clinv.php or call 0115 883 4640 between 9am and 5pm.

Housebound Residents
Housebound residents will receive a Covid-19 vaccine within their own home or place of residence. A special ‘roving team’ of vaccinators is delivering the service to housebound residents.

Those who are housebound will have been identified by their registered GP. You can read more about the COVID-19 vaccinations for housebound residents here.

Any housebound resident who has not received a letter can call the vaccination booking line on 0115 883 4640 between 9am and 5pm.

Frontline Health & Social Care staff (not employed by the NHS or local authorities)
If you are frontline staff, not employed by the NHS or local authorities, you can complete a vaccination of healthcare workers form and submit it to the email address provided. You can download a copy of the form here.

Carers providing unpaid support

Carers who provide unpaid support are in cohort 6 according to the JCVI guidance and includes all adult carers providing unpaid support, whether registered as a carer with their GP practice or not.

Carers who provide unpaid support are not being called forward yet, but as we start to invite those in cohort 6 we will work with local carers organisations to invite these carers.

Paid carers (i.e. in receipt of Direct Payment or acting as a contractor) follow the process for front line staff, completing the relevant form.  

For further information on what you can do to help, tips on preparing for an appointment and guidance on using the online booking system, SwiftQueue please visit this CCG webpage.

We understand a lot of people want to be vaccinated and we would like to reassure you this will happen. Please be patient and wait to be contacted.

For further information on why you are being asked to wait for your COVID-19 vaccine, please read the information on the GOV.UK website.

A guide for adults has been produced to provide more information about the vaccine.

We have 11 sites currently delivering the vaccination across Nottingham and Nottinghamshire. There are three hospital hubs located at Queens Medical Centre, City Hospital and King’s Mill Hospital. A larger-scale vaccination centre has also opened in Mansfield at the former Wickes store. These sites are vaccinating priority groups by appointment only.

Local vaccination services have also been launching across Nottingham and Nottinghamshire and include:

• Ashfield Health Village
•Cripps Medical Centre – this is a staff hub
•Forest Recreation Ground
•Gamston Community Centre
•King’s Meadow Campus
•Newark Showground
•Richard Herrod Centre in Carlton

Recipients of the vaccine will be called forward in priority order as set out by the Joint Committee for Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). One of the JCVI priority cohorts is frontline health and care workers and to make vaccinating this cohort as convenient as possible we have created a dedicated staff Local Vaccination Service at the Cripps Medical Centre on University Park.

Further information, including directions to your vaccination site can be accessed on our NHS Nottingham and Nottinghamshire CCG website. 

When you arrive at the site to be vaccinated, you will need to ensure that you are wearing a face mask. Social distancing will also be in place.

Anyone under the age of 70 who is Clinically Extremely Vulnerable will need to bring their invitation letter or their shielding letter to their appointment as proof that they are eligible for vaccination. Read these Frequently Asked Questions for those who are Clinically Extremely Vulnerable.
Questions will be asked about your medical history and it is important that you inform staff if you are pregnant or if you have ever had a severe allergic reaction in the past.

The vaccine will be given as an injection into your upper arm by a trained professional and you may be asked to wait for 15 minutes after having your vaccination.

You will be given a record card with the date of your second vaccination appointment which you will need to keep safe.

According to Government guidelines, you should not attend a vaccine appointment if:

• you are self-isolating.
• waiting for a COVID-19 test.
• unsure if you are fit and well.
Vaccination should also be delayed until one month after a positive COVID test.

More information on what happens at your appointment can be accessed here: What happens at your appointment – NHS (www.nhs.uk)

A Sikh couple are urging people from black, Asian and minority ethnic communities to get the Covid-19 vaccine when they are offered it by the NHS.

Ranjit and Gian Ghattaora, aged 75 and 78, received their vaccination together at the Forest Recreation Ground vaccination site when it opened on Saturday 23 January.

Ranjit, who attends the Nottingham Road and Percy Street Sikh Temple with Gian, said:

“I feel very privileged we have received our vaccines. The hard work put in by the scientists and the government to bring this vaccine to the people of our country is nothing short of incredible. Not everyone is as blessed as we are in the UK. I have many friends and family in India who will be waiting for a long time, which saddens me.

“I am actively doing all I can to encourage everyone at our temple, the Gedling Community Asian Centre, and the Punjabi Centre to book their vaccine as soon as they receive their letter. Once our communities are vaccinated we can begin seeing each other and hugging our families again. Things we all long for.”

To read more, click here.

Information regarding the COVID-19 vaccine can be accessed in an easy to read format.

A collection of videos are available on the COVID-19 vaccine in Gujarati, Sylheti, Tamil, Urdu and Punjabi. A further collection of videos on the COVID-19 vaccine is available in multiple languages here.

Translated leaflets are also available for the guide for older adults on the COVID-19 vaccination and for information on what to expect after a vaccination.

A collection of videos have also been produced in multiple languages discussing the importance of COVID-19 vaccinations and diabetes. 

Watch this video of Amarjit explaining in Punjabi why she has received the COVID-19 vaccination in Nottingham.

More information regarding the COVID-19 vaccine is currently being produced in different languages and formats. These will be shared in further editions of this toolkit, once they are ready.

The British Islamic Medical Association have also addressed some of the myths around the COVID-19 vaccine. You can read more on about this on the British Islamic Medical Association website.

CCG Community Conversations
We are asking for help reaching out to groups across Nottingham and Nottinghamshire to encourage people to access their vaccine.

We are aware that take up of the vaccine is not as high in some communities as we would like it to be, so we are asking for help in getting messages out to people. This may be coming to speak to a virtual meeting; sharing information that you can pass on or just coming to listen to concerns that people have and providing answers.

We cannot guarantee that we can get to every meeting that we are invited to but we will do all we can to provide information, encourage people to have their vaccine and counter any myths or misunderstandings.

If you would like us to attend a meeting or to support in any other way please contact us at nnccg.team.engagement@nhs.net with ‘vaccine engagement’ as the subject of your email.

CCG Engagement Bulletin
NHS Nottingham and Nottinghamshire CCG Engagement Team produce a monthly COVID-19 Summary Bulletin. A copy of the December version of the bulletin can be accessed here which covers information on COVID-19, engagement opportunities, community information and important updates from the CCG. To sign up to this COVID-19 Summary Bulletin, please email nnccg.team.engagement@nhs.net.

Further enquiries
The CCG is working closely with the local councils during the pandemic. The County Council are supporting us with managing requests for information and assistance related to the vaccine rollout so if you have any questions that are not answered by the information here please contact enquiries@nottscc.gov.uk  or call 0300 500 80 80.