Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Fife flu jab problems now resolved, say health chiefs

Demand for the flu jab has soared.
Demand for the flu jab has soared.

Health chiefs in Fife have confirmed major problems with the vaccination’s rollout in the region have been resolved.

NHS Fife apologised last month after dedicated phone lines to book appointments were swamped by demand, with systems unprepared for the number of calls.

Some 70,000 letters were sent in a single mail-shot, which led to a spike in calls and  subsequent backlog, prompting NHS Fife to bring in extra staff.

However, NHS Fife say waiting times are now down to less than five minutes by phone and emails are being answered within three working days.

NHS Fife vows to learn lessons from flu jab chaos before introduction of any Covid-19 vaccine

The health board has urged people who have not arranged a vaccination to do so.

Dr Esther Curnock, NHS Fife deputy director of public health, said: “Flu is often a very serious virus and with the ongoing risk of Covid-19, it’s more important than ever to get vaccinated against flu.

“It is vital that those who are eligible accept their invitation to be immunised and get protected ahead of peak flu season. The flu jab remains the safest and most effective way to help protect against flu and its complications and getting vaccinated takes only a few minutes.

“The vaccine takes around 10 days to work, so the sooner you get it the sooner you are protected against the virus and its effects.”

Rather than attend their local GP practice to get the flu jab, those eligible should have received a letter asking them to make an appointment to attend one of the vaccination clinics taking place across Fife.

“We know that local people experienced issues trying to arrange appointments last month, however, these issues are now resolved and we continue to have appointments available for those who are eligible,” Dr Curnock said.

“Crucially, it’s not too late to get vaccinated against flu so we are urging people aged 65 and over, and those with an underlying health conditions who have not yet been vaccinated, to get in touch as soon as possible to arrange an appointment at a clinic local to them.”