Frome Medical Practice is continuing the roll out of its flu vaccination programme and is now calling on patients who are between the ages of 50 – 65 to get in touch to book their flu jab appointment. This is a new target group for the flu vaccine, announced by the government earlier this year. Previously people under 65 were only eligible for the vaccine if they had certain medical conditions.

Appointments for this new group of patients will be available to book at the practice from Tuesday 1st December 2020. To enable the practice to provide the additional vaccinations without affecting their usual clinics a special flu clinic has been arranged on Saturday 12th December, from 8.30am – 4.30pm.

There are several ways you can make your flu vaccination appointments:

• You can book your appointment online, if you're registered to use online services.
• You can call the practice on 01373 301301. The practice is receiving an unprecedented number of calls at the current time and advises calling after 2.00pm if possible when the phone lines are less busy and asks that people remain patient if they have to wait for the call to be answered.

Practice Manager Karen Creffield said, "So far this year we've had some great feedback about our flu programme and over 6500 patients have received their flu vaccination. We want to encourage everyone in this new category to book in to attend the special clinic on Saturday 12th December. We are taking bookings from the 1st December and would encourage using online booking where possible."

The practice is continuing to encourage patients who are over 65 or who have long term conditions but have not yet had their flu jab to also get in touch to book their flu jab appointments.

When attending a flu vaccination appointment patients are asked to bear in mind the following:

• Please wear a face covering when attending the practice.
• Arrive promptly, 10 minutes before your appointment time.
• Please do not enter the building until 10 minutes before your appointment time.
• Please follow the signs directing you around the building.
• Please wear clothing that ensures your arm is ready for the vaccination as soon as you go in to see the clinician e.g. a short sleeve top, with any jacket / coat / jumper removed whilst you wait.
• Please cancel your appointment as soon as possible if you are unable to attend – these clinics are extremely popular and this means we can offer the slot to someone else.
• As with all appointments at the current time, please do no visit the practice if you have a fever, cough or have lost your sense of taste or smell. Please cancel and rearrange your appointment if you have any of these symptoms.
• Please note you will not be able to use the toilet facilities when attending your flu vaccination appointment.

The practice is already receiving queries regarding the potential COVID-19 vaccines that are currently being discussed in the news. "We are asking that patients don't contact us regarding COVID-19 vaccines", said Karen. "We are still waiting for information on when and how these vaccinations will be delivered. As soon as we know what is happening patients can be assured that we will be contacting all those eligible for the vaccine, as well as providing updates through local news outlets and our social media feeds."

For more information about the flu vaccination programme at Frome Medical Practice please click here the FMP site