COVID-19: Increased uptake in vaccine for ethnically diverse people since 'grab-a-jab' campaign, study finds
More than 400,000 people a week have received at least one dose of the vaccine since the start of the campaign in June.
Saturday 28 August 2021 04:42, UK
People from ethnically diverse communities have benefited the most from the NHS's "grab-a-jab" vaccination campaign, analysis suggests.
Over 3.8 million first doses have been delivered since the start of the campaign at the end of June - more than 400,000 a week, NHS England says.
It has allowed people to get vaccinated at pop-up walk-in centres at mosques, town halls, football grounds and festivals.
Analysis of one week in July found two in five walk-in doses were administered to people from ethnically diverse communities.
And since the campaign was launched, more than 700,000 people from ethnically diverse backgrounds have been protected from , NHS England says.
People from mixed Asian and white backgrounds saw the fastest growth in jab uptake, rising by almost a quarter - 81,933 people took the first dose by 20 June and 101,140 were vaccinated by 22 August.
There was a 22.9% increase in the vaccinations for mixed white people and it increased by 20.9% among black Africans.
In the same period, the first doses among white people increased by 11.1%.
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Dr Nikki Kanani, NHS medical director of primary care, said there is increasing confidence and greater accessibility to meet the needs of different communities.
"This hard work is paying off and we are protecting people that were previously reluctant to get the vaccine, building on work we have already done, such as tackling misinformation online, translating materials into more than 20 languages and working with faith and community leaders to promote the vaccine's safety," she said.
Health Secretary Sajid Javid said: "It's fantastic to see the positive impact NHS England's grab-a-jab weekend has had in driving vaccine uptake amongst ethnic minority groups in particular."