Coronavirus / Health board struggles to contact young folk to offer vaccination appointments
NHS Shetland is continuing to experience difficulties getting hold of predominantly younger people to offer Covid vaccination appointments and is calling once again on folk who have not had any communication from the health board to get in touch.
Board chairman Gary Robinson said on Friday morning that the health board has so far been unsuccessful in contacting several hundred mainly younger people.
During his opening remarks to Friday’s board meeting, Robinson also said that 96.8 per cent of the over 40s have had the first and as many as 91.5 per cent have had both doses.
“We continue to work hard to give two doses of vaccine to as many adults as possible by the end of July but this is of course dependent on us being able to contact people to offer appointments,” he said.
“We are urging people to continue to look out for the withheld or unknown number. We know that there are several hundred people especially in the younger age group who apparently live in Shetland but have not responded to any communication about vaccination.
“This might be due to a change of address or phone number, or people not wanting the vaccine.
“We are asking folk who want the vaccination and who have not have heard anything from us to contact us on the vaccination appointments number so that appointments can be made.”
The number to call for Covid vaccination appointments is 01595 743319.
He added that people were free to choose whether or not they want to be vaccinated. However it was important to let the health board know either way.
“I am not hard selling this, if you don’t want the vaccine, we will accept that and move on, but it is really important that we don’t have staff wasting their time.”
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