Guy’s and St Thomas' among first hospitals to offer COVID-19 jab

The NHS will begin vaccinating patients against coronavirus at dozens of hospital hubs – including Guy's and St Thomas' from this week at the start of the biggest immunisation programme in history.

People aged 80 and over as well as care home workers will be first to receive the jab, along with NHS workers who are at higher risk.

NHS staff are working through the weekend to prepare for the launch of the programme with the first vaccinations happening from Tuesday.

There are 50 hubs in the first wave and more hospitals will start vaccinating over the coming weeks and months as the programme ramps up.

Patients aged 80 and above who are already attending hospital as an outpatient, and those who are being discharged home after a hospital stay, will be among the first to receive the potentially life-saving jab.

Hospitals will also begin inviting over 80s in for a jab and work with care home providers to book their staff in to vaccination clinics.

Any appointments not used for these groups will be used for healthcare workers who are at highest risk of serious illness from covid. All those vaccinated will need a booster jab 21 days later.

Professor Stephen Powis, NHS national medical director, said: "Despite the huge complexities, hospitals will kickstart the first phase of the largest scale vaccination campaign in our country's history from Tuesday.

"The first tranche of vaccine deliveries will be landing at hospitals by Monday in readiness.

"The NHS has a strong record of delivering large scale vaccination programmes – from the flu jab, HPV vaccine and lifesaving MMR jabs – hardworking staff will once again rise to the challenge to protect the most vulnerable people from this awful disease."

The vaccine is typically delivered by a simple injection in the shoulder but there is a complex and difficult logistical challenge to deliver from the manufacturers Pfizer to patients.

It needs to be stored at -70C before being thawed out and can only be moved four times within that cold chain before being used.

NHS staff have been working over the weekend to prepare the sites and accept deliveries.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: "This coming week will be an historic moment as we begin vaccination against COVID-19.

"We are prioritising the most vulnerable first and over-80s, care home staff and NHS colleagues will all be among the first to receive the vaccines.

"We are doing everything we can to make sure we can overcome significant challenges to vaccinate care home residents as soon as possible too.

"I urge everybody to play their part to suppress this virus and follow the local restrictions to protect the NHS while they carry out this crucial work."