Thread by @clearyb1

This tweet (especially the graph below-definitely a feasible outcome) is gravely concerning as we think about the 4th wave. Imagine the scenario in October where we’re looking back on this carnage & wondering where it went wrong. A few things that I think we would regret:

https://twitter.com/andrewflood/status/1362804489485512706

There was interprofessional sniping within the vaccination programme with vested interests arguing that they’re the best at vaccination instead of pooling skills and resources to maximise vaccine coverage.

There was no centralised continuous assessment of the optimal processes to maximise yield per vial, considering available consumables.

There was a really poor process for getting volunteer input into the programme- the website was too clunky, there were too many barriers and people felt that their offer of help was ignored.

Students weren’t recruited to help- lots of potential among Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Technician, Nursing, Midwifery, Medical, Dental & Veterinary students went untapped. As a result the vaccinators/Pharmacy teams did not have the support they needed.

There was no plan for what to do when low dead space syringe/needle systems could not be procured e.g. vial pooling with a risk assessment. Use of air bubbles to emulate a low dead space syringe system.

The large scale vaccination centres were slow to get up and running and there were major staffing difficulties because hospital staff with extensive vaccination experience weren’t released to support their establishment and share learning.

Public health staff and vital units like the National Immunisation Office @HSEImm didn’t receive the resourcing they needed and too much work fell on too few people and they understandably burnt out or missed important opportunities to improve processes & outcomes.

Negative voices in the health system were louder than all the staff that wanted to get stuck in and ensure that the large scale centres ran 16 hours a day 7 days a week.

The public were influenced by vested interests agitating and sowing dissent to put commercial interests above public health. Not to mention keyboard warriors who sniped instead of volunteering at their local centre.

The community were not involved early enough or extensively enough. @officialgaa @ScoutingIreland LGFA @stjohnambulance and lots of organisations and commercial entities that would move heaven and earth to end this sooner.

All of these mistakes are avoidable. We may not have complete control over what happens in the 4th wave, but we can control a lot about the vaccination programme. We can support @paulreiddublin @CcoHse and @HSELive and have no regrets in 8 months’ time.