More on KentOnline
More on KentOnline
A coronavirus vaccination centre able to administer thousands of jabs each week is set to open today, after its unveiling was delayed by the snow.
Patients will start to be injected at the Angel Centre in Tonbridge this morning, with the facility becoming the third of its kind in Kent.
It was set to launch yesterday, but bosses from the Kent Community Health NHS Foundation Trust, which runs the site, decided to halt the planned opening after the county was blanketed in snow.
Deputy chief executive Gordon Flack said on Sunday: “We have a responsibility, not only to deliver the vaccine as quickly as possible, but also to make sure people can safely attend.
"We are sorry for any inconvenience this may cause, but as travelling conditions may be challenging in the poor weather, we must take this into consideration."
The trust stressed no vaccines had been wasted by the delay and that everyone in the identified priority groups will still receive their inoculations.
This comes after it was revealed last week that more than 60% of those in Kent's top four priority groups have been jabbed.
NHS figures show that almost 260,000 people in the county had received their first dose, as of January 31.
This means that about 78,000 jabs need to be given to priority patients in Kent, both this week and next in order to meet the government's pledge to immunise the top four groups by mid-February.
With about 83,000 injections administered in the final week of January alone, this appears to be an achievable target - so long as the vaccination programme keeps up pace and supplies are made available.
Leading Whitstable GP Dr John Ribchester said: "Assuming deliveries happen like they're supposed to, by close of play on Saturday 13, we'll have vaccinated all of groups one to four."
Meanwhile, GP Dr Jeremy Carter said the roll-out is also going "very well" in Herne Bay.
"We're in the last two weeks before the February 15 target, by which time in Herne Bay we're confident we'll have given the vaccine to everyone in the top four priority groups that want it," he added.
"As long as we get the vaccine that we need next week, I'm confident we'll do that."
