Coronavirus (COVID-19): vaccine deployment plan: update - March 2021

Update to the January 2021 plan setting out how we will roll out vaccinations in Scotland to vaccinate 4.5 million people. This plan was updated in July 2021.

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Our infrastructure and workforce

Achieving the significant success of the vaccination programme to date has been a collaborative effort involving a wide range of partners, with innovation and massive mobilisation and coordination across Scotland at its core.

We have been clear that the COVID-19 vaccination programme in Scotland is a national programme, delivered by local Health Boards. Experts in immunisation at a national and local level have supported the programme at every stage. Public Health Scotland experts are part of the programme, for instance leading clinical governance, developing national communications and training materials. Health Boards also play a critical role in shaping our approach and using local knowledge and expertise to adapt plans and communications materials to meet local need.  

Working closely with our Health Boards, Public Health Scotland and NHS National Services Scotland, we have:

  • built our vaccination infrastructure across Scotland to deploy vaccines in multiple locations, ranging from small local GP practices to larger community and mass vaccination settings
  • in some Health Board areas, deployed mobile vaccination units to help reach some of our most rural and fragile areas
  • vaccinated people who are housebound at home and developed tailored communication to the most vulnerable who were shielding.
  • built an agile and flexible workforce for vaccinations, drawing on the wider primary care workforce and beyond and engaging with third sector partners to support all elements of the vaccination process
  • achieved capacity to deliver up to 400,000 vaccinations a week in Scotland
  • mobilised our public, private and third sectors to support delivering the vaccines
  • developed a national digital solution to capture vaccine administration data
  • developed an innovative digital online appointment system within a matter of months
  • launched a self-registration service for unpaid carers
  • showcased the role of coloured appointment envelopes to enable the fast-tracking of delivery through the Royal Mail
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