Multi-faceted contacting for Covid jabs Print
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Written by Steve Glennie-Smith   
Thursday, 04 February 2021 20:45

As the Covid vaccination programme moves towards the septuagenarian baby-boomer generation, candidates can expect to be contacted when it is their turn by various means; namely letter, text or phone call.  The NHS used all three to contact me - at least this made sure, even though it was a case of Left Hand not communicating with Right Hand...

I received a letter on 30th January (dated the 22nd - such is the speed of Herefordshire’s postal service...) inviting me to book via the NHS’s website or ring 119.  This indicated the nearest available location was in Worcester - strange since Ledbury’s Community Hall has been block-booked for this purpose for some time.  The NHS site did state ‘more locations will become available’, so I tried 2 days later - whereupon the nearest had moved out to Cheltenham - so I decided to wait.  It transpired these are mass vaccination sites (there is one in Hereford, but it must have been fully booked both times I tried).

Two days after that I received a text with what appeared to be a suspicious link (which, on Googling, transpired to be genuine).  Following it, I was offered a choice of times and dates, all at the Community Hall - so I booked.  I received a confirmation text by return - from ’Nunwell Surgery’!  Eh! - I’ve been with St. Katherine’s (latterly its reincarnation as Ledbury Health Partnership (LHP), since amalgamation with the Market Surgery) ever since moving to Ledbury over 40 years ago....  (Google revealed that the sender with this rather unfortunate name - given the other spelling of its first syllable that does not refer to a female member of a religious order - is in Bromyard.)

Later, I received a phone call from the Ledbury surgery inviting me to attend the Community Hall the next day - so I told them I had already responded to a text - something that did not surprise their telephonist.  I queried ‘Nunwell’: LHP has teamed up with Nunwell over this.  Bromyard folk are expected to travel to Ledbury (or a mass vaccination site if they prefer).

The Kosher text link is of the form: accurx.thirdparty.nhs.uk/y/xxxxxxxxxx - where xxxxxxxxxx is a combination of letters and numerals that form a code specific to you, and y is a single letter.  AccuRx is a messaging agency used by the NHS.

Some surgeries still withhold their number - not very clever since many people don’t answer withheld numbers and so could risk not getting contacted about their jab.  However, the Ledbury Health Partnership does reveal its, which is 01531-825925.

Update 8th Feb: The whole procedure at the Community Hall worked very well - I was ‘processed’ on time and within 15 minutes.  Given the massive logistics of vaccinating over 50 million people, this is one thing the government does appear to have got right!

Last Updated on Monday, 08 February 2021 21:54