24-hour vaccinations are coming to London’s hospitals.
The government has previously described the UK’s vaccination rollout as a sprint, and in a bid to keep the pace as high as possible, they’ve confirmed the use of 24-hour vaccination clinics. Such a step had been promised last week, and now it’s been confirmed that London will be the first place to get the 24-hour service.
Vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi has confirmed the move, revealing that London hospitals will begin trialling the scheme before the end of January, and if it’s successful, more areas could benefit from the scheme. It’s believed that the 24 hour service will be mostly used by NHS staff on shift work, with the over-80s and other vulnerable groups currently being vaccinated sticking to the current 8am-8pm timetable.
News of the 24-hour vaccination service comes as coronavirus cases in all London boroughs look to have fallen in recent days, although rates still remain high in many of the boroughs. There’s still a long way to go, not only to meet the deadline of 14 million vulnerable people receiving their first vaccine by mid-February, but also the government’s plan to offer every UK adult the vaccine by September. Hopefully, a round-the-clock vaccine service will be able to help.