NHS Lanarkshire has passed a second milestone in our COVID19 vaccination programme. So far we have given 200,000 doses of the vaccine.

Dr Mark Russell, Lead for the COVID-19 vaccination programme in Lanarkshire, said: “Our staff have been working incredibly hard and we’ve administered 100,000 doses in February alone.

“Both the public and NHS Lanarkshire want our residents vaccinated quickly, so to help increase the pace of our local programme we are amending our current plan to vaccinate people as fast and as safely as possible.”

From Monday 8 March 2021, we will have two supercentres, seven local centres and mobile units. The two supercentres will, together, have capacity to vaccinate more than 50,000 people each week. These will be at Ravenscraig Regional Sports Facility in Motherwell and the Alastair McCoist Complex in East Kilbride.

Lanarkshire has had a high incidence of COVID-19 and our new plans will allow us to protect our communities as quickly as possible.

Our amended delivery model will also allow us to be more flexible and adapt to vaccine supply. It means that we can increase our pace of vaccination while keeping the programme safe, effective and efficient.

Dr Russell, added: “Up until now our programme has been tailored to vaccinate the most at-risk members of our community, in centres close to their homes. The new model will start as we move through priority group 6 and will remain in place for the other groups. Initially, all appointments will be at the supercentres. People can choose to reschedule their appointment to one of the local centres, however there will be a wait for these.

“We would strongly encourage people who can attend their appointment at a supercentre, to do so. This will protect the local centres for those who cannot travel. Travelling to a supercentre will enable people to receive their vaccination sooner than they would otherwise."

By concentrating our efforts on two large sites we can ensure that our programme runs as efficiently and effectively as possible. It will also help keep our staffing levels safe and more stable and keep our vaccine wastage to a minimum.

Under the current restrictions, attending a vaccination appointment is essential travel.

For people who struggle with transport to attend their appointment, we have arrangements in place with Voluntary Action South Lanarkshire and Voluntary Action North Lanarkshire to provide volunteer transport. People can call the national helpline on 0800 030 8013 (available 8am to 8pm, 7 days a week) and be directed to a local operative who will provide details.

People with mobility issues can use SPT’s bookable ‘MyBus’ service. Registration is required before booking and advance booking is recommended, as capacity is limited due to physical distancing requirements. For more information visit http://www.spt.co.uk/bus/mybus/ or call 0345 128 4025.

These new plans will also allow a number of our temporary vaccination staff to return to their roles in the wider NHS to help keep other services running. And with more people being vaccinated quicker, this will also reduce the impact on our hospitals.

The local centres will be located at:

• Bellshill
• Coatbridge
• Cumbernauld
• Fernhill
• Hamilton
• Lanark
• Stonehouse