Covid in Scotland: I'm over 80 and waiting for my vaccine

By 21 January, more than 330,000 vaccinations had been carried out in Scotland

Scottish ministers say they are on track to vaccinate all the country's over-80s by early next month - but despite the assurances it is an anxious time for elderly people and their loved ones.

Malcolm Murray is 83 and he should be in line to get a first dose of the Covid vaccine before the end of the first week in February.

But he has not yet had a call from his local GP surgery in Edinburgh and he's worried he may have a long wait to get the jab.

The surgery has said it will be in touch to arrange an appointment but he said: "I got the impression it wouldn't be anytime soon".

A total of 13% of over 80s had received their first dose by last weekend.

To meet the Scottish government's revised target, another 234,000 people in that age bracket will have to be vaccinated by 5 February - the equivalent of 70,000 people a week.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said on Friday that management figures show 34% of over 80s in Scotland had received their first dose.

• Is Scotland 'lagging behind' on vaccinating the population?

BMA Scotland says the "ambitious" target is achievable if GPs get adequate vaccine supplies.

The Scottish government remains "very confident" it can meet the deadline providing the supplies are available.

Ms Sturgeon insists the strategy of vaccinating care home residents first - in line with the advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation - is the best way of protecting the most vulnerable.

Focus has now switched from vaccinating care home residents, where about 90% have received their first dose to the over-80s in the community.

However, the Scottish Conservatives have criticised the rollout, claiming doses are sitting in "depots and collection points" rather than being injected into people's arms.

'Dependent on supplies'

Mr Murray said that when he first contacted his surgery in the west of the capital, he was told he was in a group due to receive his vaccine before 31 March.

"I thought this was odd," he said. "Nicola Sturgeon has just announced a date for my age group that was a lot earlier."

When he contacted the practice again, he was told they had started vaccinations "but when I'd get seen was dependent on supplies".

"They said they'll get in touch when they're ready for my vaccination but I got the impression it wouldn't be anytime soon," he said.

"And speaking to other people I know in my position, I can't see it being finished by the start of February."

The vaccination programme is working through the population, broadly by age

BBC Scotland also spoke to the daughter of a 92-year-old woman in East Kilbride who has had no notification from her doctor about the vaccine.

Wishing to remain anonymous, she said: "My mum is 92 but she is housebound so she is still waiting for her vaccine.

"I understand that the logistics of delivering the vaccine to people in their own homes is more involved but if she was given a date it would be helpful.

"She is on the shielding list and I haven't seen her since last March.

"She waits by the phone and for the postman every day hoping to hear something. She is worried she has been missed."

Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross told BBC Scotland he had been contacted by GPs ready to roll-out the vaccine but they do not have the doses available.

"There are hundreds of thousands of vaccines available in Scotland and they're not getting into people's arms at the moment," he said.

"They are sitting in depots and collection points and we know there are GP surgeries that they are ready to vaccinate but they don't have the supply.

Dr Andrew Buist, who chairs the Scottish general practitioners committee at the BMA, said the over-80s vaccination target could be met "as long as we have improved reliability in vaccine supply".

"GPs stand ready to roll this vaccine out to their patients in the priority groups, but can only do it if they have adequate supplies of the vaccine," he added.

"There have been encouraging promises on supplies reaching GP practices over the next few weeks from the Scottish government - we now need to make sure that matches the picture on the ground and in surgeries across the country.

"We all knew this wouldn't be an easy task, but by working with health boards and the Scottish government on supply, I remain confident we can deliver it."

Speaking at Thursday's coronavirus briefing, Deputy First Minister John Swinney said that the government was "very confident" the mechanisms were in place to meet the 5 February deadline "providing the supplies come through to us".

He went on to say the government would be happy to engage in further discussions to ensure the supply of the vaccine is as "smooth as it can possibly be".

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