Skip to content
Login Register

Joint UK Royal Surgical Colleges, Federation of Surgical Specialty Associations and Upper Airway Group Statement

25 Jan 2021

COVID-19 vaccination and dosing regimen In the light of the recent changed Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) and national public health authorities guidance on vaccination priority and increasing the interval between first and second doses of the vaccine, representatives of the Colleges, FSSA, and the Upper Airway Specialty Group have agreed the following: […]

COVID-19 vaccination and dosing regimen

In the light of the recent changed Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) and national public health authorities guidance on vaccination priority and increasing the interval between first and second doses of the vaccine, representatives of the Colleges, FSSA, and the Upper Airway Specialty Group have agreed the following:

  • The risk to all patient facing staff from COVID-19 infection remains severe, particularly now the new variant is predominant.
  • The JCVI decision to lengthen the period between doses of vaccine was taken after the most rigorous actuarial assessment of risk/benefit to the population as a whole. Public Health advice is clear that It should save substantially more lives than if second doses were given as initially scheduled.
  • The profound concerns of some in the surgical community from not being offered the increased protection that a second dose of vaccine delivers are greatly respected and understood. However, they must be considered alongside evidence that after a single dose, significant protection is generated, admittedly with data still lacking on the speed and duration of antibody development  in the case of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine. Such data are being accumulated.
  • The way to control COVID-19 and its variants remains unchanged. It is essential that all surgical and healthcare teams strictly follow current recommendations for Infection prevention and control and maintain appropriate PPE guidance as the likelihood of the patients being COVID-19 positive becomes higher. It is particularly important that appropriate PPE is used in areas of high risk or sustained exposure to high viral load including in wards, clinic, theatre or when undertaking procedures with the potential to generate aerosols.
  • We reiterate previous advice regarding caution in surgical practice, especially for those who have not yet received their first dose. As per government advice when not treating patients, it is essential to maintain social distancing and continue to wash hands regularly to minimise the risk of viral transmission.
  • We remain confident that the national public health authorities and JCVI are not only using all evidence to determine the most equitable and rapid distribution of the available vaccines, but are also listening carefully to all expressed concerns about the risks presented to all groups within our society. We respect the expertise of government advisors in making difficult judgements on how to minimise death rates during this pandemic.
  • We urge all in surgical teams to support the national effort to defeat this virus, use social media responsibly, and maintain clear communication with your Colleges and Specialty Associations as experience develops new insight to help this battle.

Category: COVID-19


Share this story:

Latest news and statements

Key priority areas

Workforce Recovery and Transformation
Health services in many parts of the world are over-stretched due to workforce shortages, rising demand for services and difficulties in retaining staff.
Read more
Wellbeing
A healthy healthcare workforce is essential for patient care. When the workforce is exhausted, experiencing burnout, and struggling to balance their work and personal lives, it impacts on everyone.
Read more
Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
We are committed to standing up for equality, diversity and inclusion. We want our College to reflect the diversity in the NHS workforce and in the patients that we care for.
Read more
Climate Change and Sustainability
Climate change has caused great harm to our planet and warnings of increasingly extreme heatwaves, droughts and flooding will all place a significant burden on our health outcomes.
Read more
Health Inequalities
The health inequalities in our society have been both highlighted and exacerbated by the covid pandemic. There is a need to do things differently.
Read more
COVID-19
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a huge impact on the lives of healthcare professionals, and the urgent need to learn whilemfocusing on delivering the best care for our patients has been an enormous challenge.
Read more

Topics


Archive


Key links



Contact us

rcpsg@grayling.com
07714307976

Log in

Log in to access your Dashboard, book events, pay your subscriptions and access eLearning material.

Log in

Register an account

New users must register before logging in. You do not need to be a member of the College in order to register.

Register

Help

Having difficulty registering or logging in? Forgotten your username or password?

Get Help