COVID-19 Bulletin: Wednesday 2 December
December 2, 2020
To keep up to date with the pace of change we will be sharing a bulletin on a daily basis. There’s a lot of change taking place at the moment so please make sure you catch up with the latest bulletins throughout the week, as even if some points seem familiar you may find the details have been updated a great deal.
As our second lockdown period ends, we must ensure we look after ourselves and others within our community. Make sure you keep in touch with those you love and your neighbours. People may well be feeling anxious, lonely and scared at this time
Thank you for looking out for one another.
In today’s COVID-19 bulletin
New
Reminder
1. COVID-19 vaccination update
The Pfizer vaccination for COVID-19 is headline news and we understand that colleagues would 
like to know more about our plans for a staff vaccination programme.
The Pfizer vaccine has been confirmed as safe and effective by the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and will begin to be rolled out to groups who the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) have decided need it most when the suppliers are made available to the NHS. We are not at that stage yet as outlined by the Government this morning.
Delivering the Pfizer vaccine is complex as it needs to be stored at very cold temperatures and moved carefully. Health care workers are likely to be the one of the first groups to receive this vaccine and we are continuing to plan how this will best be delivered for our workforce.
As well as the vaccination programme for health care workers, we are supporting the recruitment of teams to help with public vaccinations. Dudley Group of Hospitals NHS Trust are the lead recruiter for this and their available roles are here to support this programme.
All of the COVID-19 vaccines will go through rigorous testing before being licensed by the MHRA. A vaccination, in general, is the most important thing we can do to protect ourselves and our families against ill health. Current vaccinations prevent up to three million deaths worldwide every year.
We will continue to update you on our vaccination arrangements through this bulletin.
2. Reminder: Self-testing kits roll out almost complete
Thousands of self-testing kits have now been distributed to colleagues in emergency care, anaesthetics, pain management and critical care, and now the phased distribution for frontline staff is coming to an end.
The lateral flow tests are designed to help to identify any asymptomatic COVID positive cases and helps ensure we are playing our part in keeping patients, fellow NHS workers and our families safe.
Each person taking part will be given 25 tests, one of which they should perform prior to their shift every three to four days. Colleagues must submit their results via Connect.
They should ensure they are on the Trust network to enable their results to be saved correctly.
If by tomorrow, Thursday 3 December, you have not received a kit, please call the contact centre:
Monday to Friday, 8am – 6pm
- 0121 507 2664
When you hear the options, press 6 for your call to be transferred into the swabbing queue and prioritised.
Weekends, 8am – 4pm
- 07816 992873
Or
- 07970 428995.