Bournemouth BIC vaccine closure will not affect jab numbers, NHS says
- Published
More than 90,000 doses of the vaccine have been administered at the BIC
The temporary closure of a vaccination centre will not affect the numbers getting jabs, officials have insisted.
The Bournemouth International Centre (BIC) has been offering jabs since January but will pause for four weeks from Monday for a cheerleading event.
Covid infection rates have been rising in Dorset, mainly among younger people who are not yet vaccinated.
The county's public health director said there were many alternative sites offering jabs.
Latest figures show infection rates in the Dorset Council area stand at 28 per 100,000 people (up from 11 the previous week) and 58 per 100,000 in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (up from 11 in the week before).
'Pop-up clinics'
As Dorset's main vaccination centre, the BIC has so far administered 90,000 doses of the vaccine.
It was announced last month that it would close for four weeks to allow for the staging of the cheerleading competition.
Although the contest only runs for three days, a longer closure was needed to give enough time for the safe pack-down and set-up by both the NHS and the event organisers.
Kate Harvey, Dorset HealthCare service director, said: "Alternative sites are available on the National Booking System, including community pharmacies, with more coming on-stream soon.
"We are also looking into running pop-up clinics, particularly in areas where the vaccine uptake is lower."
Dorset's public health director Sam Crowe said: "It's been planned for a long time. Many many more vaccinations are being done through primary care and increasingly through pharmacies.
"I wouldn't see the numbers [of vaccinations] dipping particularly," he added.
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- Published20 May 2021
- Published18 January 2021
