"We have much to celebrate to but still more to do" says Rebecca Neno, deputy chief nurse for the COVID-19 vaccination programme at Lincolnshire CCG.
— Rebecca Neno is the deputy chief nurse for the SRO COVID-19 vaccination programme at NHS Lincolnshire Clinical Commissioning Group. This column is part of a series marking one year of the coronavirus pandemic.
The NHS is currently undertaking one of its biggest challenges in its history in the planning and delivery of the COVID-19 vaccination programme whilst ensuring people can still access NHS services from cradle to grave.
In Lincolnshire we have risen to this challenge, enabling over 90% of over 70s to have received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccination and we remain focussed on the achievement of the targets set out by the government to ensure our county isn’t left behind in the vaccination race.
The overall programme has been described as two sprints and a marathon, we have completed the first sprint and we are just about to commence the second with the marathon to be completed during the summer months.
Planning began back in late summer 2020; in fact I remember attending the meeting vividly where we were asked to commence planning for a mass vaccination programme.
Planning commenced for a programme that we didn’t fully understand and where there were more questions than answers but that didn’t stop us from rolling up our sleeves and focussing on the required job.
It was apparent from day one that all parts of the NHS in Lincolnshire along with our partners including the County Council, Lincolnshire Resilience Forum, the voluntary services and the military needed to work together to ensure we could deliver the programme for the people of Lincolnshire.
I have worked, as a nurse, in the NHS for over 25 years and I have never before seen the coming together of people and organisations with a combined enthusiasm and goal of bringing this pandemic under control and the return of our lives to some normality.
I can’t underestimate the personal commitment shown by the team who have spent many hours beyond those paid to deliver the programme in Lincolnshire and as a resident I will remain grateful for many years to come.
Our successes have been vast and my aim of ensuring Lincolnshire had access to early vaccination was realised when we opened our first hospital hub at Lincoln County Hospital on December 8, 2020.
We quickly followed this success with the opening of two local vaccination sites in Louth and Grantham the following week.
Over the coming weeks we added another hospital hub in Boston and 11 more local vaccination sites run by our amazing GP Practices working together to ensure local access for those unable to travel distances, for the housebound and for those that prefer to access a vaccination closer to home.
During January 2021 we added two mass vaccination centres, the first at the Princess Royal Sports Arena in Boston which was the first to open in the East Midlands and today remains one of the larger sites within the region and the second at the Showground in Lincoln.
Daily, these sites are able to vaccinate 1500 and 1000 people respectively and the workforce has been employed specifically for this task.
In Lincolnshire we have an amazing voluntary support network and working together our voluntary organisations are providing all the non-clinical roles and support to the mass vaccination centres.
We have much to celebrate in Lincolnshire and our achievements to date have been incredible but there is still more to do, we have the marathon ahead and we need to work with some groups to understand and overcome vaccine hesitancy.
Resilience and persistence are required but together we will succeed, there is now a light that is shining at the end of the tunnel which is getting brighter each day.
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There have been 88 new coronavirus cases in Greater Lincolnshire and one COVID-related death on Monday as restrictions eased across the UK as part of the PM’s roadmap out of lockdown.
The government’s COVID-19 dashboard on April 12 recorded 58 new cases in Lincolnshire, 16 in North East Lincolnshire and 14 in North Lincolnshire.
On Monday, one death was recorded in Lincolnshire and none in Northern Lincolnshire. This figure includes deaths both in and out of hospitals, as well as residents in hospitals outside the county.
NHS England reported no changes to the hospital death figures across the region, which still stands at 1,300 from a week ago.
Nationally, cases increased by 3,568 to 4,373,343, while deaths rose by 13 to 127,100.
In local news, North Kesteven has the most over 50s vaccinated with the first dose of a COVID-19 jab in Lincolnshire, whereas Boston has the least.
However, South Kesteven has the most 18 to 49 year olds vaccinated in Greater Lincolnshire with Lincoln having the least, according to research by Sky News.
There were 398 coronavirus cases in Greater Lincolnshire and 10 COVID-related deaths last week — a 43% drop in cases and 23% fewer deaths compared to the previous week.
Hundreds of people queued outside Debenhams and at several barbers and salons in the city as Lincoln, and the rest of England, entered the next stage of the roadmap out of coronavirus lockdown on Monday, April 12. The pubs and bars had a good day too.
The latest rules allow for the retail sector to fully reopen its doors for customers again, two weeks after the previous lockdown easing on March 29 which resumed outdoor socialising for up to six people – see the list of rules here.
Coronavirus data for Greater Lincolnshire on Monday, April 12
Greater Lincolnshire includes Lincolnshire and the unitary authorities of North and North East (Northern) Lincolnshire.
58,722 cases (up 88)
40,909 in Lincolnshire (up 58)
9,226 in North Lincolnshire (up 14)
8,587 in North East Lincolnshire (up 16)
2,182 deaths (up one)
1,610 from Lincolnshire (up one)
304 from North Lincolnshire (no change)
268 from North East Lincolnshire (no change)
of which 1,300 hospital deaths (no change)
808 at United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust (no change)
41 at Lincolnshire Community Health Service hospitals (no change)
1 at Lincolnshire Partnership Foundation Trust (no change)
450 in Northern Lincolnshire (NLAG) (no change)
4,373,343 UK cases, 127,100 deaths
DATA SOURCE — FIGURES CORRECT AT THE TIME OF THE LATEST UPDATE. POSTCODE DATA INCLUDES DEATHS NOT IN HEALTHCARE FACILITIES OR IN HOSPITALS OUTSIDE AUTHORITY BOUNDARIES.
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