GPs to get £10 bonus to vaccinate housebound patients
The NHS will pay GPs in England an extra £10 for every housebound patient who receives the coronavirus vaccine.
Doctors have been giving vulnerable people the jab in their homes as well as delivering vaccinations at their practices.
The £10 bonus reflects the extra time staff have given as well as the ‘complexity of vaccinating housebound people’, NHS England said.
Some GP services in towns and cities have administered the vaccine to more than 100 people every day – including patients with conditions such as dementia.
Meanwhile medics in rural areas have battled wintry weather including heavy snow while trying to reach patients in their homes.
The bonus is retrospective and will apply to any vaccinations already delivered.
But some people suggested the efforts of carers and practice nurses had been overlooked by NHS bosses.
One nurse wrote on Twitter: ‘Be nice if extra funding was put into #districtnursing #communitynursing too. Maybe whilst the GPs are there they could check over their own patients that they ask us to visit.’
More than 11 million people have now received their first dose of the jab, with ministers ‘confident’ the entire adult population will have received their initial jab by May.
More than 1,000 GP services are part of the NHS vaccination programme, together with 250 hospital hubs and almost 200 services run by high street pharmacies.
Another 18 sites including Leeds United FC stadium Elland Road will provide vaccinations from tomorrow.
It means more than 100 large-scale centres are now offering the vaccine.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: ‘Through our historic vaccination programme, we’ve already provided one in five adults with a jab, and we’re going further, faster.
‘We’re rightly giving GPs the resources they need to offer vaccines to the most vulnerable people who might not be able to leave their homes or those who live in rural areas.
‘I am so proud and grateful to the thousands of NHS staff, volunteers, local authorities and armed forces working tirelessly in all four corners of the United Kingdom to offer millions of lifesaving jabs to the people who need it most.’
Dr Nikki Kanani, GP and NHS medical director for primary care, also praised GPs for their ‘tremendous efforts’ to vaccinate people and prioritise the vaccination programme roll out.
The vaccination sites due to open from tomorrow are:
Chesterton Indoor Bowls Club, Cambridge
East of England Showground, Peterborough
Hemel Hempstead Hospital, Hemel Hempstead
Norwich Community Hospital, Norwich
Old Laws Court, Lowestoft
Whitemoor Lakes, Lichfield
Elland Road Stadium, Leeds
Hull City Hall, Hull
Alderley Park Conference Centre, Macclesfield
Chester Racecourse, Chester
Bucks University Aylesbury Campus, Aylesbury
St John’s Shopping Centre, Preston
The Mall, Burnley
The Mill Arts & Events Centre, Rayleigh
Saxon Court, Milton Keynes
Watford Town Hall, Watford
Watling House, Dunstable
Angel Centre, Tonbridge
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.