Sutton Town Hall opens as new vaccination centre

Venue to triple the number of jabs

AS the success of the Covid-19 vaccination programme gathers pace, Sutton Coldfield Group Practice has announced a change of vaccination arrangements from next Monday, February 1.

The practice has been granted permission by NHS England to change the designated Falcon Lodge Medical Centre to the town hall, which will enable it to triple current rollout capacity, which currently stands at 2,300 per week at Falcon Lodge.

That site will revert to a surgery and be open to patients again, while Ley Hill Surgery will continue to provide vaccinations.

“Once again we are indebted to the patience of the patients of that site for the loan of their medical facilities,” a spokesman said.

There will be also be free parking in the pay and display car park on Anchorage Road opposite the town hall and The Townhouse (Royal) pub has also granted free parking there for people attending for vaccination. A temporary pedestrian crossing will be put in place in the vicinity in the next few days. Either the Pfizer or Astra Zeneca ‘Oxford’ vaccines, both of which are very effective, will be administered depending on the deliveries received.

A spokesman for the practice said that permission for the change had been granted after a lot of work behind the scenes aided by University Hospitals Birmingham (UHB) Trust, Birmingham and Solihull Clinical Commissioning Group (BSOL CCG), Sutton Coldfield Town Council and local MP Andrew Mitchell.

A spokesperson added: “To avoid any confusion we are continuing to vaccinate at Falcon Lodge right up to this Sunday, so please turn up if you have an appointment for vaccination this weekend.

“We have a wide pool of vaccinators including retired doctors and nurses, paramedics, nurses seconded from different organisations, physios, podiatrists etc to enable us to continue to deliver medical services from our individual sites. The site will be active for 9 hours per day 7 days a week vaccine supply permitting.

“We are pleased to report that Birmingham Community Healthcare Trust (BCHC) staff have also begun doing home visits to vaccinate our housebound patients who are not able to travel to any vaccination centres.”

The practice said it has received positive feedback from patients who have had their vaccinations at Millennium Point in Birmingham city centre. There is free parking right next to the centre and it is well signposted and marshalled with short waits.

So if patients are invited to be vaccinated there you should do so if you are able to travel there fairly easily but if you cannot then we will be calling for you to have your vaccine given locally so please don’t worry.

Also some patients are being invited to M W Phillips pharmacy in Great Barr for their vaccinations, with further updates in due course.

Covid-19 vaccinations in Sutton Coldfield are ramping up, with Ley Hill Surgery in Mere Green delivering the jabs alongside Falcon Medical Centre.

Around 7,000 vaccinations have now been performed, despite around 60 patients not turning up for their jab appointments, although the wintry conditions and deep snow could have been a factor.

Due to the way the vaccines are stored and transported, there is a limited time to administer them and plan the number of vaccinations based on who is attending. Non-attendance by patients may cause vaccines to be disposed of unnecessarily.

The news comes as NHS staff started delivering life-saving COVID jabs at a network of more than 1,400 vaccinations sites this week across England.

The Sutton Coldfield Group Practice, which includes Ley Hill Surgery, Four Oaks Medical Centre, Sutton Park Surgery, Vesey Practice, Tudor Practice and Falcon Medical Centre, is leading the vaccination in Sutton and confirmed it had now given more than 7,000 injections.

It delivered its biggest vaccination day so far last Saturday, January 23, with 1,650 receiving their jab. Of that total, 1,288 vaccinations were given that day in Ley Hill with 362 more at the Falcon Lodge site.

On Sunday, Falcon Medical Centre was operational and Pfizer jabs were given ‘without wastage despite the many people who could not attend due to the weather’.

A spokesperson for Sutton Coldfield Group Practice said: “We have now administered over 7,000 vaccinations in total with this week’s target being around 2,300 vaccinations. Unfortunately, 66 patients failed to attend their appointment last week. The practice is now working through those in their 70s with a target of immunising the top four groups by the middle of February.”

The practice said: “We have commenced vaccinating patients in the 79 to 70 age group. If you fall into this category, we will contact you very soon. We are rapidly working down the lists of these people so please bear with us!”

The practice added: “Please do not call us to arrange a vaccination. You will receive a call when the time comes for you to book in for the vaccination.”

As the rollout gathered pace countrywide, an Asda supermarket in West Bromwich, an Islamic education centre in Derby and Bolton Wanderers Football Club are among the new sites operating this week.

They are among 1,438 vaccinations sites ranging from GP and pharmacy-led services to hospitals and large-scale Vaccination Centres that are now operating across the country.

NHS staff are also visiting those who cannot go to their local service or travel to a Vaccination Centre.

Professor Stephen Powis, national medical director for the NHS in England, said: “The NHS vaccination programme, the biggest in health service history, has got off to a strong start.

“NHS staff have worked hard with businesses, community and faith groups to set up an extensive network of vaccination sites that offer a range of options for people in all areas to receive their injection.

“We want to protect as many people as swiftly as possible and this latest milestone, with more than 1,400 sites up and running, means that we can continue to expand delivery as more vaccine supplies come on stream.”

The vaccination programme began with just 50 hospitals hubs on December 8. There are now more than 250 hospitals delivering the jabs along with 1,000 GP-led services.

High Street pharmacies are now vaccinating at 117 sites and there are also 47 large-scale Vaccination Centres, capable of jabbing thousands of people each week.

Council reviews complaints procedure

Residents in Sutton Coldfield are being asked for their views about how their complaints are being handled by Birmingham City Council.

The council is in the process of revising their complaints process, however before we launch the new approach – we would like to hear your views.

It is keen to invite citizens who have previously complained to or have an interest in how the council handles complaints, to tell us what you think about the new process. 

The process review includes; knowing how to complain, when to complain, how to be kept informed and how the Council can learn from complaints.

The council says: “We want all citizens to be able to say: ‘I felt confident to speak up and making my complaint was simple. I felt listened to and understood. I feel that my complaint was dealt with efficiently’.”

In addition it would like residents to tell it their experiences of complaining to the city council or to hear from citizens about what a good complaints process would look like for you. 

If you would like to be part of the panel influencing this change, please email getinvolved@birmingham.gov.uk with a brief description on how you think you can help with revising the complaints process in addition to letting us know if you are from a minority ethnic group and if you class yourself as a disabled person.  The deadline for your expression of interest is 5^th February 2021.

The council is hoping to include as many people as possible in the meeting which will be held using Microsoft teams, a web based application.  The meeting is scheduled to take place on 11^th February 2021 from 2pm – 3pm.

Everyone who shows an interest is forwarded a meeting invitation.

If you have any further questions, please email us at getinvolved@birmingham.gov.uk or call us on 0121 464 4133.

Plans are under way to create a new multi-million pound Children’s Emergency Department at Good Hope Hospital, writes Bill McCarthy.

The new department will provide eight treatment cubicles, a new reception space, as well as a quiet room and wellbeing room. It also means that more space can be dedicated to treating adult patients in the area vacated by the current department.

The single-storey building represents an exciting opportunity to design a care environment around the specific needs of children and young people.

The entrance to the department will remain in its existing location, with a new ambulance entrance and drop-off area. Paediatric patients will have their own waiting area and separate corridor spaces.

Paula Lane, Lead Nurse – Paediatric Emergency Department, said: “The team are really excited about the project and are helping to design the new spaces based on our experience of working on the front-line with children and young people.”

Sharon Holland, Operations Manager – Emergency Department, added: “From a Trust perspective, the new department represents a huge investment in Good Hope Hospital and is a unique chance for us to work with colleagues across our clinical divisions to get it right for children and young people.”

The project will help provide additional Emergency Department capacity and will open in spring. The team cares for approximately 19,000 children every year, with this number rising annually.

University Hospitals Birmingham Charity will also be contributing to the project, providing those ‘over and above’ elements which will help make the environment as comfortable as possible for children and young people.

Dr Sanjay Mistry, Emergency Department Consultant, concluded: “We are looking forward to being able to work in a superb environment which matches the great level of care we offer our young patients at Good Hope. I’ve worked as a doctor in ED for over 15 years and this new department is one of the most exciting developments I’ve been involved with. It will be of huge benefit to both staff and patients in the local community.”

We are looking for paediatric nurses to join our team at UHB. View the vacancies on NHS Jobs website via the link at the end of the page.

Our friendly team are passionate about staff engagement and compassionate care. Make a passion and a career come together.

Angela Birmingham, Matron Emergency Department at Good Hope Hospital, added: “We hope our new department will attract paediatric nurses interested in Emergency Care to join our team. We pride ourselves on providing a variety of professional development opportunities and clinical excellence.”

How you can help the hospital during this stressful time:

Please continue to use NHS 111 if you urgently need medical help or advice but it’s not a life-threatening situation. NHS 111 makes it easier for you to access local NHS healthcare services.

You can call 111 or visit 111.nhs.uk if:

• you need medical help fast for you or your child but it’s not a 999 emergency
• you think you need to go to A&E or need another NHS urgent care service
• you don’t know who to call or you don’t have a doctor to call
• you need health information or reassurance about what to do next

For less urgent health needs, contact your doctor or local pharmacist in the usual way.

For immediate, life-threatening emergencies, continue to call 999.