NHS Orkney continues to vaccinate against both Flu and Covid, recognising both can be serious, even for healthy people.

If you are eligible for vaccination and have missed your appointment, or you are a household contact or carer and haven’t yet had your vaccine, please come along to one of the drop-in clinics at The Balfour below:

  • Monday 4 March 10am – 12pm
  • Monday 11 March 10am – 12pm
  • Monday 18 March 10am – 12pm
  • Monday 25 March 10am – 12pm

If you require more information regarding your eligibility please call the team on 0300 303 5313, or visit: NHS Inform Winter Vaccines.

In winter 2023/24, Scotland administered 1,650,152 influenza (Adult 18+), 538,606 influenza (Children 6 months to 17 years) and 1,390,800 COVID-19 vaccines since September 4, 2023. Among adults 65+, 80.1% received influenza, and 79.3% received COVID-19 vaccines by week 7.

Uptake is lower for influenza and COVID-19 vaccines compared to winter 2022/23. Public Health Scotland estimates that COVID-19 vaccines have saved more than 24,000 lives in Scotland between December 2020 and March 2023.

Covid Update:

The Number of acute COVID-19 admissions to hospital in Scotland decreased to 119 for the week ending 18th of February 2024 for the previous week of 154.

Health Board of Treatment4 Feb 2411 Feb 2418 Feb 24
NHS Ayrshire and Arran1277
NHS Borders011
NHS Dumfries and Galloway461
NHS Fife221213
NHS Forth Valley1389
NHS Grampian988
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde534729
NHS Highland663
NHS Lanarkshire222512
NHS Lothian381712
NHS Orkney211
NHS Shetland111
NHS Tayside231321
NHS Western Isles221
Golden Jubilee National Hospital000
Scotland207154119

The number of inpatients with COVID-19 in hospital (seven day average) also decreased over the same period to 182 from 199 the previous week.

Health Board of Treatment4 Feb 2411 Feb 2418 Feb 24
NHS Ayrshire and Arran13813
NHS Borders1722
NHS Dumfries and Galloway232
NHS Fife24118
NHS Forth Valley121112
NHS Grampian171413
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde756554
NHS Highland1269
NHS Lanarkshire302324
NHS Lothian454229
NHS Orkney110
NHS Shetland110
NHS Tayside121014
NHS Western Isles911
Golden Jubilee National Hospital000
Scotland270199182

The monitoring of local waste water for  fragments of coronavirus’ ribonucleic acid (RNA) continues:

The data for the area covered by the Kirkwall waste water system was last published on 13th of February and shows a positive result.

Weekly Deaths Registered with National Records of Scotland published on 22nd February 2024

The provisional total number of deaths registered in Scotland in week 7 of 2024 (12th February to 18th February) was 1,294 (35 or 3% lower than the expected number of deaths in week 7). There were 26 deaths mentioning COVID-19.

Those figures in more detail

Deaths involving Covid

  • Age 46 – 64: 1 death female
  • Age 65 – 74: 9 deaths 4 female, 5 male
  • Age 75 – 84: 9 deaths 4 female, 5 male
  • Age 85 + : 7 deaths 5 female, 2 male

There were 26 deaths involving Covid, Covid was the main cause in 20 of them.

There was 1 death involving Covid in Orkney.

One death took place in a Care Home; 2 at Home/Non Institutional Setting; 22 in Hospital; and 1 at Other Institution.

Since the start of the pandemic there have been 18, 655 deaths involving Covid in Scotland. Covid was the main cause in 14, 695 of them.

Fiona Grahame

a woman holding a light in her hands

3 responses to “Vaccination & Updates for #Flu and #Covid”

  1. On the subject of vaccinations…..I posted this on my blog on Wednesday…

    “It’s Still With Us…

    Mike felt unwell – took a Covid test this morning – which is positive.

    The Fates are hard – after 4 years of being very careful – we’d just started to go among people – lunch in cafés – into shops.

    Mike’s big concern is me catching it – for obvious reasons. My big concern – is Mike! He’s not very unwell – and we’re going to just have to be very cautious and …….deal with it.

    A well-wisher wrote…

    “It is very definitely still about. At least you are both fully vaccinated which is good.”

    To which I replied…

    “Well – Mike wasn’t ‘allowed’ a vaccination this year – being old and manky I was – he wasn’t. He had a ‘flu jab – not Covid.

    I’m trying hard not to get angry about that – we went through the anger at the time when he was told he couldn’t have a Covid jab – though he explained the implications of the possibility of me catching it from him.

    On with the day – masks – hand gel – stepping back in time.”

  2. And this is in m’blog this morning….

    “The Goat of Covid….

    As Mike has Covid (so far – like a stinker of a ‘flu) and I’m generally manky anyway – at the moment we’re – managing.

    The situation in our house reminds me of the story of when a man went to a Wise-man complaining about how difficult his life was, and the Wise-man advised him to tether a goat in his Living-room and come back to see him in a week’s time.

    The man came back – dishevelled and distraught – saying that the goat had brought chaos into his home.

    The Wise-man asked did he want to return to normality? The man shrieked – ‘Yes!!!’ The wise man said ‘Let the goat go.’

    For ‘goat’, read ‘Covid’ – except that we can’t ‘let it go’ – it’ll go in its own time.

    And meanwhile – we manage the situation – with help from a good neighbour who offered to get shopping for us and, true to his word, left a couple of loaves on the doorstep.

    Also meanwhile – I’m getting withdrawal symptoms from having no hugs!”

  3. I think I’d rather opt for the goat in the living room… we used to keep goats over many years and yes, they did sometimes come inside the house… which wasn’t that bad unless you had food on the table that you’d have to defend then obviously.
    Sorry to hear that the disease that you managed to avoid for such a long time did get one of you now. Hoping for you that it will turn out to be rather benign and not cause problems.
    Wishing you both well!

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