Agenda item

To approve the minutes of the Committee’s meeting held on Wednesday 28th April 2021.

3.1       The minutes of the meeting on 27 April 2021 were approved, with the Committee noting there had not yet been an update from the Clinical Commissioning Groups regarding support provided to patients accessing healthcare services remotely.

3.2       One correction was noted. In section 6.2 of the minutes, Woodfield Road was

erroneously described as being in the south of Westminster. It was agreed that the minutes would be updated to reflect its location in the north of the borough.

4.         VERBAL UPDATE: VACCINATIONS IN WESTMINSTER

4.1       The Committee received a verbal update from Pippa Nightingale, Chief Nurse for North-West London and the SRO for the COVID-19 vaccination programme locally. Pippa Nightingale noted that several events were being run at different locations, including Chelsea Football Club, to facilitate vaccination uptake and that similar events would continue to be offered throughout the summer and a booster campaign was already being planned. Ms Nightingale also advised that the vaccination programme was now six months in duration to date and characterised the current phase as a ‘sprint’. Ms Nightingale advised the Committee that in North-West London, the number of vaccine doses delivered was approaching 2.5 million and that this represented 62% of the population of North-West London having received two doses of a vaccine. No proportion was noted for those having received one dose only, but the Chief Nurse did comment there was much work to do to catch up with second doses. Pippa Nightingale also noted that those who had not received their second dose primarily had not yet received it due to the necessary time delay between receiving first and second jabs.

4.2       The Committee was informed that uptake remained lower than required, especially amongst people aged 17-30. Pippa Nightingale, the Chief Nurse, noted that particular effort had been made to communicate using social media including via TikTok, as well as door-knocking and letter drops. Special vaccination events – for example in conjunction with sporting events had been organised to attract the 17-30 age group.

4.3       The Committee heard that plans for a booster vaccine for the over-50s were in development, with the intent to deliver the boosters through primary care and community pharmacy services alongside the annual influenza vaccination campaign.

4.4       The Committee queried whether ethnicity and vaccination uptake was being monitored and was advised that the disparity in vaccine uptake amongst older people from different ethnic backgrounds was not apparent in younger people from different ethnic backgrounds who were taking up the offer of vaccination. Pippa Nightingale, the Chief Nurse, also advised the Committee about the focus on multi-generational households, with younger people bringing older family members for vaccinations.

4.5       The Committee heard that the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) was evaluating all available evidence to determine which vaccinations would be offered as part of any future booster programme.

4.6       The Committee was informed that the use of separate data sources had resulted in difficulty in accurately assessing Westminster’s level of vaccine uptake. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) dataset, the Whole Systems Integrated Care (WSIC) database, and the GP register data suggested differing perspectives on the proportion of Westminster’s population who had been vaccinated. The Committee further heard that this was particularly the case for some foreign national residents and Westminster’s significant student population, who may have travelled elsewhere during earlier phases of the pandemic and potentially been vaccinated elsewhere.

4.7       The Committee queried the ability of local community pharmacy services to deliver vaccines in Westminster, with only one pharmacy in Westminster presently offering the vaccine compared to nine in Ealing. Pippa Nightingale, the Chief Nurse, noted that the decision about which pharmacies offered the vaccine had not been made locally in the initial rollout phases of the programme, but that this would change for upcoming phases. Ms Nightingale also observed that Westminster’s vaccination centres were larger than elsewhere, meaning that there may have been less need to recruit use of community pharmacy services to deliver vaccinations.

4.8       The Committee also queried the reduction in use of Little Venice Sports Centre as a vaccination centre. Pippa Nightingale, the Chief Nurse, explained to the Committee that this was due to a significant reduction in demand for vaccination in the locality, so the venue’s operating hours had been reduced and an alternative additional venue (Harris School Westminster Sixth Form) had been provided.