The director of the HSE’s vaccination campaign, Damien McCallion, has said that slots have been made available at vaccination centres this weekend for 12 to 15-year-olds.
Registration for this cohort will open on Thursday with the first vaccines to be administered at the weekend, he told Newstalk Breakfast.
There will also be evening clinics along with appointments through a limited number of GPs and pharmacies. This was to facilitate parents who would have to accompany their children, he explained.
“We would be optimistic about the uptake in this age group,” he added.
It is anticipated that this cohort will have received their second doses by the middle to the end of September. “No one will be left behind.”
Registration
Registration will be the initial approach for the campaign for the 12 to 15-year-olds, all information was available on the website www.hse.ie, he said with the consent process online to facilitate families. However, if this was not possible the consent process could still be completed at the vaccination centre, at the GP or in the pharmacy, said Mr McCallion.
“We have moved as much of the consent process online, so people could do it in advance. We are very conscious of people’s concerns.”
Mr McCallion said that people should take comfort from the fact that the National Immunisation Advistory Committee (Niac) had been so “methodical” in their approach throughout the pandemic. Their strategy had been to look carefully at the evidence, they had made their recommendations on the basis of the best international evidence.
“Follow the best medical advice,” he advised parents.
