Covid-19 vaccination: Logistical challenges in primary care

The roll-out of the Covid-19 vaccines will require serious background preparation from the medical settings in which they are administered, with a focus on preserving the integrity of the cold chain through transport to point of treatment. It will be important to store them correctly to avoid medical waste and protect the public.

Locked-down families and businesses are placing huge store in a Covid-19 vaccine being widely available by spring 2021. Every jab will bring with it the promise of life returning to some kind of normality. However, purchase costs of this eagerly awaited vaccine will place a considerable additional burden on the NHS's overall vaccine budget, which currently stands at around £200 million a year, as will the delivery of a long-term mass vaccination programme.

Any contribution to mitigating the pressures on already overstretched health and social care budgets is therefore to be welcomed – and avoiding the waste of this incredibly valuable new vaccine is one way in which medical settings can play their part.