Nine out of 10 people in North East have received Covid-19 jabs

VACCINES Monaghan only county to dip below 90%

While over 90% of people aged over 12 in County Cavan have received a vaccine, the HSE vowed to continue to encourage uptake of vaccines.

The figure was reflected in trends across most other counties in the North East, with Meath and Louth both exceeding 95% of uptake, while only Monaghan did not breached 90%.

In welcoming the data, the HSE repeated that coming into contact with Covid-19 when vaccinated means you are much less likely to get very sick.

Dr Augustine Pereira, Director of Public Health North East acknowledged, “The virus is still circulating and it’s important than every person in the North East has benefited from the protection that vaccination provides.”

When colleagues from Public Health North East, the two Community Healthcare organisations (CHO1 and CHO8), and the Local authorities of Cavan, Monaghan, Meath and Louth first met in September last year, vaccination uptake rates in some age groups were amongst the lowest in the country at under 60% in some parts of the North East. In Cavan and Monaghan, just three out of every five people were vaccinated at the time.

Covid-19 transmission was rampant, and sickness and hospitalisation threatened to overwhelm. A joint mission between Public Health, Community Healthcare and Local Authorities of the North East was embarked upon, the goal to encourage vaccination, dispel the myths, to inform and educate to drive down virus transmission, listen to community groups and protect lives and livelihoods.

As the vaccination uptake figures (fully vaccinated, February 2022) for the counties of the North East in the table below shows, we have achieved remarkable success reaching over 95% uptake in North East amongst eligible adults.

Dr Pereira, acknowledged the role of community vaccination centre staff, GPs and pharmacies in their collective achievement as well as the role local authority staff have played in their professional and everyday life.

“We have seen collaboration across public health, healthcare staff in communities and local authorities at a pace and scale unparalleled in recent times. The commitment to improve and protect health amongst all and the reach of Local Authorities into their communities have all contributed to the success of the vaccination programme and protection of the people of the North East from Covid-19. New teams, new working cultures and new approaches to solving difficult problems pursued.”

Meetings with Social Inclusion and PPN networks were facilitated through open floor information sessions. Local Authorities enabled the dissemination of key Public Health messages through their communication platforms.

Chief Executive of Cavan County Council, Tommy Ryan said; “The people of Cavan have shown extraordinary resilience and solidarity over the past two years, and thanks to their sacrifices we are looking towards summer 2022 with a renewed sense of optimism. However, almost one in ten people in Cavan who are eligible for vaccination are not yet protected against Covid-19. Though many restrictions have been relaxed in recent weeks, the threat of Covid-19 has not disappeared entirely, and those who are unvaccinated are still at risk of long Covid, of severe illness, and of death. I urge all those who have not yet done so, to join the vast majority of their fellow citizens in safely availing of vaccination.”

Dr Pereira confirmed that Public Health North East will continue to reach out to the unvaccinated to meet with, and provide access to vaccines, saying: “we are grateful for the valuable insights on local populations and communities that Local Authorities and Community Healthcare have shared with Public Health teams, which has been key to communicating into hard to reach communities.”

Deputy Chief Executive of Monaghan County Council, Paul Clifford said: “I am extremely proud of the people of Monaghan who have shown extraordinary resilience and made huge sacrifices over the past two years, and thanks to this we are looking forward with a renewed sense of hope. However, there are still 15% of the people in Monaghan who are eligible for vaccination, but are not yet protected against Covid-19. I would encourage anyone who has not yet done so to avail of the vaccination as the threat of Covid-19 has not disappeared entirely.”