UK records 'bumper' vaccination week

London: The UK rounded off what it has declared its busiest week for the vaccination programme against COVID-19 with Super Saturday , when National Health Service (NHS) staff delivered almost 100,000 jabs in a single hour.

A record 756,873 jabs were given across England, including 686,424 first doses to cap a bumper week , the NHS said on Sunday. Nurses, doctors, pharmacists and other healthcare professionals delivered 96,834 jabs between 11am and 12pm on Saturday, an average of 1,614 a minute or around 27 jabs a second.

That number took total jabs in the last seven days 956,352 higher than the previous busiest week. The speed and precision of the NHS vaccination campaign has been on full display this weekend, and yesterday NHS staff across England administered a remarkable 27 jabs a second. In just one day we vaccinated the equivalent of the entire adult populations of Liverpool, Southampton and Oxford combined, said Sir Simon Stevens, NHS England CEO. When my turn came earlier this week I was delighted to get my first dose, and we have a strong supply of vaccine for the coming week too, so if you are aged 50 plus, don't delay! Now is a great time to book your NHS COVID jab it's quick and efficient, safe and effective, and painless," he said.

In all, 25,150,062 doses have been delivered providing protection to 23,559,503 people since the NHS vaccination programme kicked off little over 100 days ago in December 2020. More than 1.5 million vital second doses have also been administered. The record week meant that more than half of adults in England had been jabbed by last Thursday, with UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson receiving his vaccine at St. Thomas's hospital, in London, where he was treated while critically ill with COVID, on Friday. He had said that he literally did not feel a thing , adding: It was very good, very quick and I cannot recommend it too highly. Everybody, when you get your notification to go for a jab please go and get it.