Residents of Killybegs Community Hospital were among the first to receive Covid-19 booster vaccines under the national roll-out.
Covid-19 booster vaccinations are now taking place for people aged 80 years or older in the community and those 65 years or older living in a long term residential care facility across the counties of Cavan, Donegal, Leitrim, Monaghan and Sligo, following recommendations from NIAC.
Video: HSE
Vaccine clinics are being set up in the residential care settings. People aged 80 years or older and not living in residential care, will be contacted by their GP. In some cases, GPs will refer patients to a HSE vaccination centre for this booster vaccination.
The vaccine offered is a single booster dose of either Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, regardless of the COVID-19 vaccine course given previously.
Meanwhile NIAC has recommended that a booster dose of Comirnaty® (Pfizer) vaccine be offered to all those aged 60 to 79 years who have completed their primary course with any COVID-19 vaccine and that the booster dose should ideally be given six months (with a minimum interval of five months) following completion of the primary vaccination schedule.
Cara O’ Neill, CHO1 Covid Vaccination Lead & Head of Health and Wellbeing said “We are delighted to be rolling out the COVID-19 booster vaccination programme across CHO 1. With the country re-opening, it is reassuring for older persons and their families that people are now getting their booster vaccine.We have come a long way since the vaccination programme began in January of this year. CHO1 would like to thank the Saolta Hospital Group and the staff from Letterkenny Vaccination Centre for their support with the booster COVID-19 vaccine rollout at residential care facilities throughout the North West.”
