Dr Imran Choudhury’s Foreword: Sutton Care Bulletin #2

I want to thank everyone who has already had their COVID-19 vaccination. The decision that you’ve made is important for you, the residents you care for, your family and community.

The care sector has done so much to be proud of in Sutton during the pandemic and the vaccine is our light at the end of the tunnel. 

If you haven’t had your vaccination yet, I’d like to remind you that the National Booking System is now open to health and care staff, making it easier than ever to find a convenient time and place to book an appointment. 

For anyone who is interested, we are holding webinars and question and answer sessions in Sutton. These aim to ensure you are fully informed about the vaccine and its roll out and to address some of the misinformation you may have seen circulating on social media. We would welcome you all to attend our next session which is on Tuesday 23 February (5:30-6:30pm). I will be on the panel with Councillor Ruth Dombey (Leader of the Council) and Dr Dino Pardhanani. Please sign up for the event here and submit your questions here. Remember to check the Sutton Care Hub website for details of future events.

If these sessions aren’t convenient for you, NHS South West London CCG hosts daily question and answer sessions for care sector staff. These are held at 3.00pm-4.00pm and 6.00pm-7.00pm (Monday-Friday) and you can join these meetings by clicking here. 

I would remind you how important it is to use trusted sources of advice for information about the vaccination. To help with this, Sutton Council has created a list of frequently asked questions (FAQs)  to answer everything from what vaccines are available, what’s in them and how they work, to which groups are being prioritised for the vaccination and when. Please do read them and let us know if there are any questions you have that are not answered here. 

Despite our progress with the vaccination programme it is still really important that we all follow the national guidance and HANDS, FACE, SPACE messages.

Thank you for all your extraordinary efforts during this difficult year. 

Let’s continue to work together to Keep Sutton Safe.

Kind regards,

Imran

Dr Imran Choudhury

Director of Public Health, London Borough of Sutton