Chief Clinical Director of UL Hospitals Group urges maximum possible uptake for COVID-19 vaccination

As the incidence of COVID-19 transmission in the Mid-West remains high, the Chief Clinical Director of UL Hospitals Group, Prof Brian Lenehan has appealed for anyone who has not yet been vaccinated against the disease to attend the walk-in clinics organised at the Mid-West COVID-19 Vaccination Centres this weekend.

The latest in a series of no-appointment walk-in Pfizer Dose 1&2 vaccine clinics for adults, and children aged 12 and over, will be held at the vaccination centres in Nenagh (Friday); Ennis (Saturday); and Limerick (Saturday and Sunday).

 Prof Brian Lenehan appealed for anyone who had not already done so to attend for vaccination this weekend. He said the need to go for the highest levels of vaccination was underlined by current figures for incidence of COVID-19, as well as the numbers of hospitalisations from the disease and subsequent admissions to critical care,

 “COVID-19 is still with us, and indeed, we are going to be living with it for some time. Throughout the pandemic, we’ve seen how the contagiousness of the disease can make small numbers spiral quickly out of control. But now, vaccination is on our side, and it is working—but for it to be most effective, we have to get as close to 100pc vaccination as possible. So please, if you haven’t done so already, please attend our centres for vaccination this weekend.”

The clinics are part of a sustained national effort to maximise public immunity to COVID-19 through vaccination. They also maximise access for those who received AstraZeneca Dose 1 and can, per national guidance, receive the Pfizer vaccine for their second dose. Clinics are scheduled in the Mid-West this weekend as follows:

Date
Vaccination Centre
Vaccine Clinic

Clinic Time

Friday October 15

Nenagh, Abbey Court Hotel
Pfizer Dose 1 & 2
2pm-7pm

Saturday October 16

Ennis, West County Hotel
Pfizer Dose 1 & 2
5pm-7pm

Saturday October 16

Limerick Racecourse
Pfizer Dose 1 & 2
2pm-7pm

Sunday October 17

Limerick Racecourse
Pfizer Dose 1 & 2
2pm-5pm
 

Those attending for second doses should bring their vaccine record card with them. Please note that a minimum of 21 days must have passed after Pfizer Dose 1 before Dose 2 is administered. This should be observed also for people who have received AstraZeneca Dose 1 and who are presenting for Pfizer Dose 2.

No appointment is necessary for these clinics, and there is no requirement to register on the national vaccine registration portal. However, please note that children under 16 years must be accompanied to centres by a parent or guardian. 

For identification, anyone attending should bring their birth certificate, or a photo ID (i.e., driving licence, Public Services Card, travel pass, passport, Garda-issued National Age Card, or school or college ID). For queries, contact the local HSE-approved helpline number on 087-9681240 (9am-6pm, seven days a week). All clinic dates and times and related information will be published on www.hse.ie. Outside of these walk-in clinics, parents or guardians of children aged 12 to 15 may continue to register children on the HSE website via this link: https://vaccine.hse.ie/# register

UL Hospitals Group COVID-19 vaccination teams continue working to ensure that everyone in the Mid-West will receive a vaccine, in line with national guidance on COVID-19 vaccination. Anyone with queries about COVID-19 vaccination may contact the national helpline on 1850-241850.

In the week to close of business on Sunday October 10, a total of 2,240 doses of vaccine were delivered in the Mid-West COVID-19 Vaccination Centres at Limerick Racecourse, the West County Hotel, Ennis, and the Abbey Court Hotel, Nenagh. This brings to 365,875 the total vaccines administered under the UL Hospitals Group vaccination programme since it began on January 4, and includes healthcare workers, residents and staff of nursing homes, and patients in the various cohorts and age groups.

These totals do not include the vaccination work that has been undertaken to date by our colleagues in HSE Mid-West Community Healthcare, the National Ambulance Service, General Practitioners and pharmacists. Separately last week, UL Hospitals Group vaccinators have delivered 2,378 addition vaccine doses to people with weakened immune systems, and 589 booster doses to people in residential care settings in the region.