NHS staff asked to work “day and night” as booster jab target brought forward

NHS staff are being asked to work day and night and over Christmas to ensure every eligible adult in Wales is offered a booster vaccine before the end of the month, Health Minister Eluned Morgan has said.

Speaking in a Welsh Government press briefing on Monday, Mrs Morgan said the booster programme will have to double in speed to hit the new target, which has been brought forward from the end of January due to concerns over the new Omicron variant.

Mrs Morgan said expanding the booster programme would be a “massive undertaking” and added: “Cases of Omicron are growing daily. It’s now present in every health board area in Wales.

“We must be prepared for cases to rise very quickly and very steeply.”

She continued: “We’re asking a huge amount of the NHS. We’re asking staff to cancel leave and to work in clinic day and night and through Christmas to vaccinate hundreds of thousands of people in a matter of weeks.”

Earlier this month, the Welsh Government announced plans to offer every adult in Wales a booster vaccine before the end of January – but on Monday, December 13, First Minister Mark Drakeford announced this would be brought forward to the end of this month.

Mr Drakeford said: “We are still learning about this new form of coronavirus. All the information we have tells us we are facing a very serious situation.

“By the end of the month, omicron will have become the dominant form of the virus in Wales, bringing a new wave of infections and illness.”

He said this could translate into “a large number of people needing hospital treatment just at a time when the NHS is already under significant pressure”.

Mr Drakeford continued: “New evidence has emerged about the effectiveness of our vaccines against omicron. Two doses of the vaccine is simply not enough to give the level of protection against the infection we all need.

“Urgent efforts are now underway to accelerate the programme even further so we can offer all eligible adults an appointment by the end of this year if possible.”

He added: “We have already taken some steps to increase protections in Wales and we may need to take some further steps to keep Wales safe.”

Welsh Conservative Shadow Health Minister Russell George said boosters are a “vital defence” against Omicron and called on the Welsh Government to deliver the boosters on a “war-like scale”.

Mr George said: “The system clearly needs to be modernised to introduce more dynamism and flexibility, like online booking systems, especially considering the numerous questions over how normalised regular jabs are going to become.”

He added: “We do not need more restrictions if a critical mass of people get their jabs. There is a duty on all those eligible to get their vaccination and the Labour Government has a responsibility to deliver the rollout rapidly.

“A free society and an open economy depend on it.”