A Highland woman whose mum died after contracting Covid in a care home outbreak warns Scotland’s new vaccine system isn’t fit for rural areas.
Melanie Newdick, a member of Scottish Covid Bereaved group, appeared at the UK Covid-19 Inquiry on Wednesday, where she laid out her concerns.
The 54-year-old lost her mum Christine Newdick to the virus on January 22, 2021 after taking her out of Kintyre Care Home in Invergordon following an outbreak.
A total of 47 residents in care homes in the area died after a large community outbreak of Covid-19 in late December 2020.
She described the week leading up to her mum’s death as the “loneliest week of her whole life”, as she battled to get care for the 77-year-old.
At the UK Covid Inquiry on Wednesday, she said vaccines were not delivered with the same pace across Scotland, particularly in remote and rural areas.
“The part of Scotland where I live, a very remote part of Scotland, the delivery slowed before Christmas came, so some people didn’t get the vaccine as early as they could which could have had impacts for them,” she said.
Ms Newdick also criticised Scotland’s approach to delivering vaccines since April 2023, with all types of vaccinations transferred from GP surgeries to health boards.
Knowing she was going to travel down to London, she rang the vaccination helpline to find out when she could get an appointment for her flu vaccination.
“I could have gone to a clinic today 20 miles from home between 1pm and 3pm”, she told the inquiry.
“I could go to a clinic tomorrow 220 miles from my home, which is the next one available.”
Ms Newdick added: “In the Highlands, where I live, it’s geographically the same size as Belgium. It’s got two and a half percent the population but we have to use the same centralised health system.
“It doesn’t work for a rural community. Who is going to drive 220 miles for a vaccine?
“I’m very keen on vaccines but even I’m not going to do that. We need a system that’s going to work for the population it serves and not a central one size fits all policy.”
An NHS Highland spokeswoman said it has been running the winter vaccination programme since October.
She added: “The programme is coming to an end so we are focusing on drop-in clinics”.
Vaccinations for key workers
Meanwhile, the 54-year-old said she has “questions” over how decisions were made around vaccinations for key workers.
She said: “When we had the initial vaccines for care home residents, care home workers couldn’t get the vaccine at the same time.
“In our local care homes, that’s how Covid went into the care homes from a community outbreak through the staff and then 47 people died in my local town just in care homes from that.”
An NHS Highland spokeswoman said: “We’ve been running the winter vaccination programme since October.
“The programme is now coming to an end so we are focussing on drop-in clinics.”
A Scottish Government spokesman said: “The Scottish Government is committed to responding to both the UK and Scottish Covid-19 inquiries, as learning lessons from the pandemic is vital to prepare for the future.
“It would be inappropriate to comment on the detail of evidence being considered by the UK Covid-19 Inquiry.”
Conversation