LIVE: Q&As for health and social care staff

People who have direct contact with patients, clients or service users at higher risk from coronavirus (Covid-19) are eligible frontline social care or health care workers in England.

Health workers, for example:

• you work in a clinical role (such as a doctor or nurse)
• you have contact in a non-clinical role (such as a receptionist or porter)
• you work in a hospital laboratory, mortuary or a funeral home

Social care workers, for example:

• you are a registered professional in social care (such as a social worker or nurse)
• you work in residential care, nursing care or in supported living
• you provide personal care for people in their homes

The following community-based social care workers are eligible:

 The following staff groups are not eligible within this priority group as defined by the JCVI:

• Administrative staff who do not have any direct contact with clients.
• Social care workers working with children who are not considered priority within the context of the JCVI priority cohorts 1-9 (children under 16 who do not have underlying health conditions leading to greater risk of disease or mortality and children who have no underlying health conditions).
• Unpaid carers.

NHS England will be monitoring the national booking service to identify instances of fraud related to people who do not meet the definitions above.

Please note that if you already have an appointment booked or allocated in the next 10 days please do not book another appointment via the national booking service. Please ensure that you attend the appointment that is booked for you.  This will greatly help us to manage vaccine wastage and make sure that everyone gets their vaccination as quickly as possible.

It has been announced that booster vaccines are to be made available for care home residents, health and social care workers, people aged over 50, those aged 16 to 49-years-old with underlying health conditions, adult carers, and adult household contacts of immunosuppressed individuals.

Health and care staff who are eligible to have a Covid-19 booster vaccine are being encouraged to use the National Booking Service to arrange their top-up appointment.

From the 11 February for a period of 2 weeks, Health and Social Care Workers are able to book a vaccine appointment directly, via the National Booking service.

Please try to book online first but if this is not possible, you can phone 119 free of charge, 7am to 11pm, 7 days a week.

You will need to show proof of employment as a health or social care worker at your appointment. Read our seperate answer for more information about what happens when you arrive for your vaccine.

Please note that if you already have an appointment booked or allocated in the next 10 days please do not book another appointment via the national booking service. Please ensure that you attend the appointment that is booked for you.  This will greatly help us to manage vaccine wastage and make sure that everyone gets their vaccination as quickly as possible.

You will be asked to verbally declare to the person booking you in at the vaccination site that:

• you are a health or social care worker
• the type of role/work you do
• the name of your employer

You will also need to show further proof of employment as a health or social care worker such as one of the following:

• A recent letter from you employer setting out how you meet the eligibility criteria
• Authorisation letter from the local authority
• A staff ID badge
• A recent (within the last 3 months) payslip which shows your employer.

You will also be asked for photographic identification.

You will be informed, by the person recording your vaccination, that it will be recorded that you are a health or social care worker.

We understand that health and social care staff provide an invaluable service to the local community, and their protection against coronavirus is extremely important.

Although many staff have already been vaccinated, and staff vaccinations continue to take place, the CCG is now writing to health and social care employers across the region to ensure that any staff who have not yet had the vaccine can receive an invitation as quickly as possible. 

If you are a member of staff, a locum GP or an agency worker, please contact your employer for further information.

It is likely that most staff will be invited to receive their vaccine at one of the region’s hospital hubs, however each employer will receive specific details of where and when their teams will be able to be vaccinated.

From the 11 February for a period of 2 weeks, Health and Social Care Workers are able to book a vaccine appointment directly, via the National Booking service. See our seperate answer on this for more information.

If you’re a frontline worker working in social care, you are more likely to be exposed to COVID-19 at work. Health care workers and those working in social care (particularly in care homes) are at much higher risk of repeated exposure to the infection. Catching COVID-19 can be serious and may lead to long term complications. These are more common in older staff or those with underlying clinical risk factors. You can have COVID-19 without any symptoms and pass it on to family, friends and residents, many of whom may be at increased risk from coronavirus. Being healthy doesn’t reduce your risk of catching COVID-19 or passing it on. With high rates of COVID-19, it’s more important than ever to help stop the spread of coronavirus, to avoid pressure on the NHS and to keep the health and social care workforce healthy.

The COVID-19 vaccination will reduce the chance of you suffering from COVID-19 disease. Like all medicines, no vaccine is completely effective and it may take a week or two for your body to build up some protection from the frst dose of vaccine. Some people may still get COVID-19 despite having a vaccination, but this should lessen the severity of any infection.

The evidence on whether COVID-19 vaccination reduces the chance of you passing on the virus is less clear. Most vaccines reduce the overall risk of infection, but some vaccinated people may get mild or asymptomatic infection and therefore be able to pass the virus on. It is highly likely that any infection in a vaccinated person will be less severe and that viral shedding will be shortened. We therefore expect that vaccinated health and care staff will be less likely to pass infection to their friends and family and to the vulnerable people that they care for.

Like all medicines, vaccines can cause side effects. Most of these are mild and short-term, and not everyone gets them. Even if you do have symptoms after the frst dose, you still need to have the second dose. Although you should get good protection from the frst dose, having the second dose should give you longer lasting protection against the virus.

Very common side effects include:

• having a painful, heavy feeling and tenderness in the arm where you had your injection. This tends to be worst around 1-2 days after the vaccine

• feeling tired

• headache

• general aches, or mild fu like symptoms

Although feeling feverish is not uncommon for two to three days, a high temperature is unusual and may indicate you have COVID-19 or another infection.

You can also report suspected side effects of vaccines and medicines through the Yellow Card scheme. You can do this online by searching Coronavirus Yellow Card or by downloading the Yellow Card app.

You can take the normal dose of paracetamol (follow the advice in the packaging) and rest to help you feel better. Do not exceed the normal dose. These symptoms normally last less PROTECTION FOR SOCIAL CARE WORKERS 5 than a week. If your symptoms seem to get worse or if you are concerned, call NHS 111. If you do seek advice from a doctor or nurse, make sure you tell them about your vaccination (show them the vaccination card) so that they can assess you properly

The vaccines do not contain living organism, and so are safe for people with disorders of the immune system. These people may not respond so well to the vaccine. A very small number of people who are at risk of COVID-19 cannot have the vaccine – this includes people who have severe allergies.

Like all new medicines the vaccines have not yet been tested in pregnant women. So, we advise that most low risk women should wait until their pregnancy is completed before they are vaccinated. Please speak to your employer about other ways to reduce your risk of COVID-19. Most women who catch COVID-19 during pregnancy do not suffer a more serious outcome than non-pregnant women and will go on to deliver a healthy baby. As more safety data on the vaccine becomes available this advice may change.

If you are pregnant, but believe you are at high risk, you may wish to discuss having the vaccine now with your doctor or nurse.

If you fnd out that you are pregnant after you have had the vaccine, don’t worry. The vaccines do not contain organisms that multiply in the body, so they cannot cause COVID-19 infection in your unborn baby. As we have done for other vaccines, PHE is establishing a monitoring system to follow up women who are vaccinated in pregnancy. We hope this will provide early reassurance for women as time goes on.

Women of childbearing age, those who are pregnant or breastfeeding, please read the detailed information at www.gov.uk/government/ publications/covid-19-vaccinationwomen-of-childbearing-agecurrently-pregnant-planning-apregnancy-or-breastfeeding.

Yes, you should be able to work as long as you feel well. If your arm is particularly sore, you may fnd heavy lifting diffcult. If you feel unwell or very tired you should rest and avoid operating machinery or driving.

You cannot catch COVID-19 from the vaccine but it is possible to have caught COVID-19 and not realise you have the symptoms until after your vaccination appointment. Please continue to have the regular screening tests that your employer arranges. If you have any of the symptoms of COVID-19, stay at home and arrange to have a test. If you need more information on symptoms visit www.nhs.uk/conditions/ coronavirus-COVID-19/ symptoms/

Plan to attend your second appointment. You should have a record card with your next appointment written on it, for an appointment in 3 to 12 weeks time. It is important to have both doses of the same vaccine to give you the best protection.

If you are unwell, it is better to wait until recovered to have your vaccine, but you should try to have it as soon as possible.

You should not attend a vaccine appointment if you are selfisolating, waiting for a COVID-19 test or unsure if you are ft and well.

The vaccine cannot give you COVID-19 infection, and two doses will reduce your chance of becoming seriously ill. No vaccine is completely effective and it will take a few weeks for your body to build up protection.

So, you will still need to follow the guidance in your workplace, including wearing the correct personal protection equipment and taking part in any screening programmes.

To continue to protect yourself, your residents, your family, friends and colleagues you should follow the general advice at work, at home and when you are out and about:

• practise social distancing

• wear a face mask

• wash your hands carefully and frequently

• follow the current guidance www.gov.uk/coronavirus