Fishing crews targeted in vaccination push

Drop-in clinics are being offered to crews at harbours in the region

Fishing boat crews are being targeted as part of efforts to reduce Covid infection rates in south west Scotland.

NHS Dumfries and Galloway said it was offering drop-in vaccination clinics to those working on boats berthed at harbours including Kirkcudbright and Stranraer.

Public health consultant Dr Nigel Calvert said receiving both doses of the vaccine was the best way to protect your health.

He said they were keen to offer everyone vaccination - including the crews of fishing boats coming to the area.

"Getting vaccinated is quick, simple and easy, but as we're seeing from cases it can make a real difference in people's experiences if they encounter Covid-19," he said.

'Relatively steady'

The move comes after the health board's chief executive Jeff Ace issued a plea to people to get vaccinated in order to ease pressure on critical care.

The health board said there had been a "very slight" decline in recorded cases in the past week.

A total of 887 were recorded in the week ending 7 September, compared with 917 in the week before.

Dr Andrew Rideout said: “As much as we wish we were seeing the start of a move downwards in terms of Covid case numbers, it’s still too early to say.

“Thankfully, over the past three weeks case numbers in Dumfries and Galloway have held relatively steady and have not continued climbing in the way they have been in other parts of the country. 

“However, we have to recognise that we do have high numbers of cases right across our communities, which means there is a very real possibility that anyone could encounter Covid-19 at any time."