GPs and all other patient-facing practice staff will be encouraged to take up a free Covid-19 booster vaccination through the national programme this autumn.
In terms of patients, ‘all those aged 65 or over, all those in care homes for older people, and those aged 6 months or over who are in a clinical risk group will be eligible for vaccination this autumn’, as per the recommendation of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI).
The NHS vaccination will not be offered to unpaid carers and household contacts of people with immunosuppression.
But, in an update last week, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) confirmed that the national autumn vaccination offer would extend to all primary and community healthcare staff involved in direct patient care, despite not being recommended by the JCVI.
The eligible group is defined in the Green Book as ‘staff who have frequent face-to-face clinical contact with patients and who are directly involved in patient care in either secondary or primary care/community settings’.
It also includes pharmacists, ‘those working in independent, voluntary and non-standard healthcare settings’, including hospices and care homes, and ‘staff working on the Covid-19 vaccination programme, temporary staff, students, trainees and volunteers who are working with patients’.
And it extends to staff, including non-clinical staff, in secondary or primary care/community healthcare settings ‘who may have social contact with patients but are not directly involved in patient care’, including ‘receptionists, ward clerks, porters and cleaners’.
The DHSC update said: ‘The JCVI has not advised offering the vaccine to frontline health and social care workers, staff in care homes for older adults, unpaid carers and household contacts of people with immunosuppression as part of the national programme.
‘The advice suggests health and social care service providers may wish to consider setting up an occupational health vaccination programme for frontline health and social care workers – as is the current situation for flu vaccines.’
But it said that ‘as setting up a new occupational health programme will not be possible before autumn this year, JCVI suggested health departments may choose to continue offering vaccination through the national programme this autumn’.
‘The Government has decided to continue to offer vaccination to frontline health and social care staff, as well as staff working in care homes for older people in the autumn 2024 programme.’
Minister for public health and prevention Andrew Gwynne said: ‘We are committed to protecting those most vulnerable from COVID and have accepted the independent advice from the JCVI for the autumn 2024 vaccination programme.
‘We will also continue to offer COVID vaccination to frontline NHS and social care workers and those working in care homes for older people this autumn.
‘I encourage anyone invited for a vaccine to get one as soon as possible to protect yourself and reduce pressure on the NHS during winter, helping to cut waiting times and get the health service back on its feet.’
In May, NHS England told GP practices to plan for an ‘early October’ start to the Covid-19 autumn vaccination programme.
A version of this article was first published by Pulse’s sister title The Pharmacist
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