GP hub vaccination clinic at Saga reaches 100,000 dose milestone

Marking the vaccination milestone

A GP hub running covid vaccination clinics in one half of the Saga building at Ramsgate has celebrated a huge milestone.

GPs from a number of surgeries, including those in Margate and Broadstairs, have been working from the site to deliver the covid vaccinations.

Yesterday (June 8) the GPs, staff and volunteers celebrated reaching 100,000 doses given.

The milestone – which comes six months into the vaccination programme- was marked with a celebration, including cake and balloons.

Dr Ash Peshen, who is one of the GPs with the Margate/Mocketts Wood hub, said: “It has been an amazing journey over last six months .

“We have seen camaraderie among the staff, a willingness to go the extra mile and a real can do attitude .Everyone has been working together, including patients by coming forward, the government/NHSE/CCG by organising vaccine deliveries in the background and our teams by helping to get those jabs done .

“We are so proud of GP Team SAGA for getting to 100,000 doses and we will continue on site even after the community trust leave.”

Paula Wilkins, Chief Nurse at NHS Kent and Medway Clinical Commissioning Group, added: “We’ve seen a momentous effort right across the county and organisations to get people vaccinated against Covid-19 and that will continue until everyone is vaccinated against this life-threatening virus.

“The CARE, Margate and Mocketts Wood Primary Care Network team is one of the shining examples of where our clinicians and administrative staff are going above and beyond to ensure residents are protected. I cannot thank everyone enough for all that they are doing.”

The GP hub has operated at Saga since March. Half of the building was being used by Kent Community Health Trust for its vaccination programme.

The health trust is due to finish at the site on June 19 but the GP hub vaccination clinics will continue. The health trust exit will not affect vaccinations as all second dose appointments will be completed.

Clive Tracey, Operational Lead for the KCHT vaccination programme, said: “We are unbelievably proud of our vaccination team in Thanet, which has worked with the local Primary Care Network (PCN) to deliver thousands of vaccinations.

“Once we have completed our second doses for the over 50s, our PCN colleagues will be taking over the site at Saga and will continue to offer vaccinations to all eligible adults, in line with the JCVI guidance.”

Currently anyone aged 25 or over, or extremely clinically vulnerable, or a frontline health or social care worker is eligible to book their vaccination through their GP surgery, online or call 119.

According to the government coronavirus dashboard there have been a total of 90,161 first doses given in Thanet and 70,176 second doses (as of June 7) equating to 76% of Thanet adults having the first dose and 59% both doses.

The covid positive test rate for Thanet stands at 5.6 per 100,000 – well below the UK figure of 45.8 per 100,000.

22 Comments

  1. I think it’s great news that all these people are getting the vaccination but I’m not surprised the GP hub has reached this number, they’ve been very active in getting people in and as they get £13 per head that’s a good return! £1.3M

    Not sure why the government couldn’t just let the NHS side do all the delivery, would have saved all that tax payers money and let the GP’s concentrate on opening their surgeries!

      • My understanding is the NHS across the country is made up of different ‘Trusts’ unlike our GP surgeries, which are now private enterprise, so yes, at the moment I do believe the NHS trust are not charging for each vaccination!

        • Our GPs have exactly the same relationship with both NHS England and the Commissioner organisations as the Community Trust do. Both get paid for vaccinations. Mainly because both have staff to pay.

          • Dave, the NHS trusts are funded by taxation and some NI contributions, NHS England are the main body of the NHS, trusts cover areas across the country to deliver to specific requirements of that area. GP practice’s or partnership are contracted by the NHS to deliver primary care and a lots of other contracts, all of which the practice is paid, the NHS pay them to deliver prescriptions but the GP can also bulk buy medicines, GP surgeries are able to make a profit, the NHS trust doesn’t send an invoice to the government having vaccinated 100,000 people, they are given the vaccine and told to administer it, the GP hub, for example, are given the vaccine, contracted to administer it and then give the NHS an invoice (so to speak) for the amount of vaccines they have administered, they can and do, make a profit.

  2. Buck – it is NHS staff who are actually administering and oversee these hubs. There are volunteers who assist as well. Where do you think the NHS would find sufficient staff to do it any other way?

    Many congratulations and heartfelt thanks to all who are involved in the vaccinations.

    • Jane – very well said – I am extremely grateful to NHS and their staff for all they have done for me surgically and for my Covid jabs. Some people are never happy and find fault with everything.

    • Not quite right, there is an nhs side and a GP side that have been carrying out the vaccinations at Saga. The GP side gets paid £13.00 per vaccination. They are the ones advertising that suddenly they have a spare 1000 vaccines available. Wonder why

    • Jane hi, we are actually talking about the GP hub at the Saga center, not the NHS side, I know that because I am one the volunteers on the NHS side and loving every minute of it.

  3. Renowned Nobel Prize winner and virologist Prof.Luc Montagnier refers to the vaccine programme for the coronavirus as an “unacceptable mistake”. Mass vaccinations are a “scientific error as well as a medical error,” he said. “It is an unacceptable mistake. The history books will show that, because it is the vaccination that is creating the variants,” He also believes the jabs will lead to neurodegenerative illnesses. Many other experts also speaking out and being completely censored in the mainstream, as the government’s Behavioural Insight Team uses fear propaganda to ‘nudge’ the jab uptake – as we see with the current dubious variant scare stories. Viruses mutate!

  4. And hundreds if not thousands of other eminent scientists, world wide, have a different view. A view based on evidence, research, and peer reviewed papers published in learned journals.I know which one I will most heed.

    Indeed viruses mutate. Every time a new host is infected, there’s an opportunity for mutation.
    Most mutations are unviable. Some are benign. Some (like the Delta variant) are much more infectious, some (like the Beta variant) do not respond as well to our current vaccines. That’s why spread of the virus must be suppressed as fast as possible, by a combination of social behaviour and vaccination.

  5. The nurse/healthcare practitioner kneeling on the left gave me my vaccine – she made me feel totally at ease and was making people laugh with her great sense of humour. After a long queue etc. to get in (glad to see so many people take it up) it was a nice atmosphere inside and the staff/volunteers are wonderful heroes.

  6. The difficulty for Democract in using references to Professor Montagnier is that the professor has not had his startling conclusions peer reviewed, nor published in learned journals.
    On the other hand, conclusions about the efficacy and safety of vaccines are well documented.
    Perhaps Democrat would point to one peer reviewed piece of research by the professor that has appeared in a recognised academic journal or publication?

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