Local MP, David Rutley, praised the hard work of local medical teams in the Macclesfield Primary Care Network and the support of dedicated volunteers when he visited the Vaccination Centre at Macclesfield Community Centre on Duke Street recently.
Like many other residents attending the Vaccination Centre, David was warmly welcomed by members of the committed volunteer team, even though they were working outside in freezing conditions and in snow flurries. Several volunteers have given their support after having retired as health practitioners and some will soon be able to use their skills and expertise to assist directly with vaccinating patients.
Louise Clulow, Programme Manager at Macclesfield Primary Care Network, who is responsible for managing the vaccination programme locally told David that there are now over 50 volunteers involved in the vaccination initiative and 24 clinical volunteers. This work is also a clear priority for her family and Ms Clulow’s husband is also assisting as an active volunteer in the roll out programme.
Dr Joe Banns, Macclesfield Primary Care Network Medical Director and GP at Park Lane Surgery, explained to David that all patients in the over 70s age group in the local area have now received their vaccination, which is ahead of the Government’s target of mid-February. Robust processes and procedures have been developed, involving the support of the Primary Care Network Project Management Team, Practice Managers, Clinical Pharmacy team and administrative staff, to ensure that the vaccination process is as effective as possible. Thanks to the dedicated support of the all those involved over 1,200 doses of vaccine can be delivered from 13 vaccination stations on a day when the vaccine is made available.
There are also plans to have a new mass vaccination centre at Alderley Park to assist with the wider roll out of the vaccine in our area.
The vaccination team in Macclesfield are keen to recruit more volunteers to assist with this vital initiative in the months ahead and beyond. Victoria Newton, Volunteer Coordinator, is keen to hear from local residents who would like to provide their support. They should contact victoria.newton8@nhs.net to register their interest and to find out more about this important work.
After meeting Ms Clulow and other members of the vaccination team, David said, “It is so positive to see our local doctors, nurses, Practice Managers, medical administrators and so many volunteers in Macclesfield taking forward this very important programme – we are all very grateful for their work. Our volunteers play a vital role and make it easier for the medical teams to get their work done. I hope that more local residents will take the opportunity to volunteer in support of the vaccination programme that will be with us for months to come.”
