High risk/cohort 7 - GP doesn't seem too interested

Wesser

Some GPs are not vaccinating those in cohort 4 or cohort 7. The HSE are meant to setting up some kind of mechanism by which they can be done in a mass vaccination centre but this hasnt been set up yet. GPs were told it would be ready last friday but no sign of it yet

Wolf359f

wobbie10 wrote: »

Can confirm that no GP referral pathway exists for cohort 4 & 7.
Working here a GP office and have a list of approx 50 people that we have been trying to refer for last month.
We have been banging our head off brick wall with no reply from HSE.

Patients getting very angry on the phones as they have been skipped over by less ill people.

Rumor was that a pathway was ready to go live last weekend until the hack happened.

The portal system is working very well but i feel they have dropped the ball on this cohort.

I will post back if / when a referral path does go live.

I'm curious how, before this referral pathway went live, how did GP's refer cohort 4 & 7? There's been plenty of people from those cohorts posting on here after getting vaccinated in a MVC a a result of a referral from their GP.

Anyway, I got a txt via swiftqueue last Friday after the hack about a referral from my hospital consultant for a vaccine. So it could be using the same system for booking bloods for booking vaccines. As there seems to be a problem with GP's booking bloods after the hack, and lack of the pathway going live for GP's, could it be the same system?

On my facebook feed theres a lad 29 years of age holding his gp vaccination card for pfizer proudly in his hand boasting that he has booked his holidays
I know him
Nothing wrong with him
No underlying
His girlfriends father is the gp...

Marine Layer

Marine Layer wrote: »

On my facebook feed theres a lad 29 years of age holding his gp vaccination card for pfizer proudly in his hand boasting that he has booked his holidays
I know him
Nothing wrong with him
No underlying
His girlfriends father is the gp...

Bound to be a certain amount of corruption on the part of some GPs, where others are wholly ethical. I remember one GP saying on radio that he really didn't know exactly what criteria he should be using when selecting his patients "at high risk".

Sleeper12

My wife's surgery rang her about her 2nd jab in a few days. She got chatting about how busy they were. She was told that they aren't giving out anymore 1st injections to any group until they have worked there way through 2nd doses over the next week or so. Basically if the spent a month solid doing first jabs of pfizer then they are going to spend a month doing the 2nd jabs and can't take on any more work until this is complete

I wonder if this might explain what is going on in some surgeries

[Deleted User]

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Bound to be a certain amount of corruption on the part of some GPs, where others are wholly ethical. I remember one GP saying on radio that he really didn't know exactly what criteria he should be using when selecting his patients "at high risk".

A gp's practice in the next town over to me texted a teacher I know early 30s perfectly healthy
He had tried one inhaler from them 3 years ago and hasnt been in since
Hes not astmatic
He turned down the vaccination and fair play but god knows who got it instead
Then you have other gps not giving out any cohorts because they'd make more those days on consultations it seems
I know one cohort 7 waiting over 3 weeks on the portal

tDw6u1bj

Deleted User wrote: »

I remember one GP saying on radio that he really didn't know exactly what criteria he should be using when selecting his patients "at high risk".

This was clearly laid out by the HSE before vaccination started.

plodder

tDw6u1bj wrote: »

This was clearly laid out by the HSE before vaccination started.

Yes, my daughter was initially told her asthma wasn't severe enough, but the criteria were actually quite simple to avoid this kind of nonsense. Anyone on long term preventative asthma medication qualified.

lucalux

I may as well ask here as it's come up in previous posts...
I dont know if I should ring my GP and ask about vaccination.

I have asthma all my life and am on a daily symbicort (steroid) inhaler and a Ventolin (reliever) inhaler, both long term.

I didnt think that put me in the higher risk category in terms of actually getting the vaccine, that maybe I'd have to be under the care of a consultant/have had attacks recently/have had complications for that.

Anyone by any chance know if i would or wouldn't be considered for vaccination by my GP at this stage? Or would I just be annoying them?!

I'm just staying well way from people and getting shopping delivered and I can stay doing that till my age cohort comes up (34) but I'd feel relieved to get it sooner at the same time, if that isn't too selfish sounding!
Thanks

lucalux

lucalux wrote: »

I may as well ask here as it's come up in previous posts...
I dont know if I should ring my GP and ask about vaccination.

I have asthma all my life and am on a daily symbicort (steroid) inhaler and a Ventolin (reliever) inhaler, both long term.

I didnt think that put me in the higher risk category in terms of actually getting the vaccine, that maybe I'd have to be under the care of a consultant/have had attacks recently/have had complications for that.

Anyone by any chance know if i would or wouldn't be considered for vaccination by my GP at this stage? Or would I just be annoying them?!

I'm just staying well way from people and getting shopping delivered and I can stay doing that till my age cohort comes up (34) but I'd feel relieved to get it sooner at the same time, if that isn't too selfish sounding!
Thanks

You are a definite cohort 7 and should be on your gp's list for vaccination from your description
You should not have to wait for your age group

odyssey06

lucalux wrote: »

I may as well ask here as it's come up in previous posts...
I dont know if I should ring my GP and ask about vaccination.
I have asthma all my life and am on a daily symbicort (steroid) inhaler and a Ventolin (reliever) inhaler, both long term.
I didnt think that put me in the higher risk category in terms of actually getting the vaccine, that maybe I'd have to be under the care of a consultant/have had attacks recently/have had complications for that.
Anyone by any chance know if i would or wouldn't be considered for vaccination by my GP at this stage? Or would I just be annoying them?!
I'm just staying well way from people and getting shopping delivered and I can stay doing that till my age cohort comes up (34) but I'd feel relieved to get it sooner at the same time, if that isn't too selfish sounding!
Thanks

Strictly speaking no unless you had oral steroids recently. Inhaler steroids dont count based on the official HSE guidelines.
But some GPs are making up their own rules as far as cohort 7 go so you could take a chance.

plodder

odyssey06 wrote: »

Strictly speaking no unless you had oral steroids recently. Inhaler steroids dont count based on the official HSE guidelines.
But some GPs are making up their own rules as far as cohort 7 go so you could take a chance.

I got this from the guidelines:

Chronic respiratory disease

Other chronic respiratory disease, for example: stable cystic fibrosis, severe asthma (continuous or repeated use of systemic corticosteroids), moderate COPD.

continuous use of systemic corticosteroids would include inhalers surely?

That is what my daughter was told on the HSE help line.

What has confused some people is the "severe" bit. Asthma that is under control might not be considered severe by some people, but it's a chronic condition.

krissovo

My GP’s said yesterday morning they are still doing over 70’s and they don’t have the dosses to do group 7 and no chance of them referring me elsewhere which just sounds lazy to me.

Imagine my surprise last night when my perfectly healthy 30 something year old cousin was vaccinated at the same GP’s yesterday afternoon. It turns out that my auntie was vaccinated yesterday and she was asked if she would like to contact up to 5 people of any age and they will vaccinate them as they always have spare at the end of the day:mad:

Tails142

odyssey06 wrote: »

Strictly speaking no unless you had oral steroids recently. Inhaler steroids dont count based on the official HSE guidelines.
But some GPs are making up their own rules as far as cohort 7 go so you could take a chance.

That is not correct, being prescribed symbicort/seretide places you in high risk category unless there's some secret guidelines somewhere that isn't public.

odyssey06

plodder wrote: »

I got this from the guidelines:
continuous use of systemic corticosteroids would include inhalers surely?
That is what my daughter was told on the HSE help line.
What has confused some people is the "severe" bit. Asthma that is under control might not be considered severe by some people, but it's a chronic condition.

Systemic corticosteroids are oral.
Inhalers arent systemic from what I have been told... thats why they are prescribed for delivery of the steroid medicine so they wont have systemic effects.

lucalux

lucalux wrote: »

I may as well ask here as it's come up in previous posts...
I dont know if I should ring my GP and ask about vaccination.

I have asthma all my life and am on a daily symbicort (steroid) inhaler and a Ventolin (reliever) inhaler, both long term.

I didnt think that put me in the higher risk category in terms of actually getting the vaccine, that maybe I'd have to be under the care of a consultant/have had attacks recently/have had complications for that.

Anyone by any chance know if i would or wouldn't be considered for vaccination by my GP at this stage? Or would I just be annoying them?!

I'm just staying well way from people and getting shopping delivered and I can stay doing that till my age cohort comes up (34) but I'd feel relieved to get it sooner at the same time, if that isn't too selfish sounding!
Thanks

I'm same as you plus cardiomyopathy issue and I apparently wouldn't quite qualify under cohort 7 although I have vaccine due to age. GPs are apparently applying g the criteria quite differently in practice.

iamwhoiam

krissovo wrote: »

My GP’s said yesterday morning they are still doing over 70’s and they don’t have the dosses to do group 7 and no chance of them referring me elsewhere which just sounds lazy to me.

Imagine my surprise last night when my perfectly healthy 30 something year old cousin was vaccinated at the same GP’s yesterday afternoon. It turns out that my auntie was vaccinated yesterday and she was asked if she would like to contact up to 5 people of any age and they will vaccinate them as they always have spare at the end of the day:mad:

That is just awful . Shame on that GP not to have a list of high risk patients and have them on standby .

ShineOn7

krissovo wrote: »

My GP’s said yesterday morning they are still doing over 70’s and they don’t have the dosses to do group 7 and no chance of them referring me elsewhere which just sounds lazy to me.

Imagine my surprise last night when my perfectly healthy 30 something year old cousin was vaccinated at the same GP’s yesterday afternoon. It turns out that my auntie was vaccinated yesterday and she was asked if she would like to contact up to 5 people of any age and they will vaccinate them as they always have spare at the end of the day:mad:

One thousand percent report that fúcker to the Medical Council https://www.healthcomplaints.ie/specific-complaints-procedures/medical-council/

Write to your local TDs about them too

I would go out of my way to destroy a GP's business who was that blatantly ignorant towards Cohort 7, only then to vaccinate a healthy 30 year old

they don’t have the dosses to do group 7 and no chance of them referring me elsewhere which just sounds lazy to me.

Can you leave them and go to another GP?

I just got a call from my GP to attend for my second dose next Friday. (I'm age 51, cohort 4).

My daughter age 24 and also cohort 4 got her first vaccine last week also from GP.

Lumen

This was posted in the appointment thread but I don't want to drag that off-topic again so I thought I'd reply here.

ShineOn7 wrote: »

Some vaccines simply aren't suitable to some conditions in Cohort 7

From table 5.2 in Chapter 5a of the HSE immunisation guidelines, the following cohort 7 conditions:

- Cancer - Haematological - within 1 year
- Chronic kidney disease - eGFR <30ml/min
- Immunocompromise due to disease or treatment - High dose systemic steroids or living with HIV

...are recommended to get mRNA if available.

All the other cohort 7 conditions are OK for Janssen or AZ, and even the above conditions are suitable for these vaccines is no mRNA is available within 3 weeks. I assume they've run the numbers on the risk of getting COVID if waiting any longer.

HSE wrote:

Conditions in the shaded areas may be associated with a
suboptimal response to vaccines and patients with these conditions should
be given an mRNA vaccine if practicable and timely. However, if preferential
selection of an mRNA vaccine will result in delayed vaccination for more than 3
weeks, any benefit of using a higher efficacy vaccine may be lost.

Source: 5a of https://www.hse.ie/eng/health/immunisation/hcpinfo/guidelines/

IANAD.

ShineOn7

Lumen wrote: »

This was posted in the appointment thread but I don't want to drag that off-topic again so I thought I'd reply here.


From table 5.2 in Chapter 5a of the HSE immunisation guidelines, the following cohort 7 conditions:

- Cancer - Haematological - within 1 year
- Chronic kidney disease - eGFR <30ml/min
- Immunocompromise due to disease or treatment - High dose systemic steroids or living with HIV

And out of 350,000 people on Cohort 7 do you not think there's a sizeable number of them with one of these three conditions?

Lumen

ShineOn7 wrote: »

And out of 350,000 people on Cohort 7 do you not think there's a sizeable number of them with one of these three conditions?

I don't know. Do you?

However, these are the non-shaded conditions, i.e. the things which qualify people for group 7 but which do not trigger the preference for mRNA:

- Cancer - Haematological - within 1 - 5 years
- Cancer - Non-haematological - within 1 year
- All other cancers on non-hormonal treatment
- Chronic heart and vascular disease - e.g. heart failure, hypertensive cardiac disease
- Chronic liver disease - e.g. cirrhosis or fibrosis
- Chronic neurological disease or condition - Significantly compromising respiratory function and/or the ability to clear secretions e.g. Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy
- Chronic respiratory disease - Other e.g. stable cystic fibrosis, severe asthma (continuous or repeated use of systemic corticosteroids), moderate COPD
- Diabetes - All diabetes (Type 1 and 2) except where HbA1c ≥58mmol/mol
- Inherited metabolic diseases - Disorders of intermediary metabolism not fulfilling criteria for very high risk
- Intellectual disability excluding Down Syndrome
- Obesity - BMI >35 Kg/m 2
- Severe mental illness - e.g. Schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, severe depression

ShineOn7

Lumen wrote: »

I don't know. Do you?

However, these are the non-shaded conditions, i.e. the things which qualify people for group 7 but which do not trigger the preference for mRNA:

- Cancer - Haematological - within 1 - 5 years
- Cancer - Non-haematological - within 1 year
- All other cancers on non-hormonal treatment
- Chronic heart and vascular disease - e.g. heart failure, hypertensive cardiac disease
- Chronic liver disease - e.g. cirrhosis or fibrosis
- Chronic neurological disease or condition - Significantly compromising respiratory function and/or the ability to clear secretions e.g. Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy
- Chronic respiratory disease - Other e.g. stable cystic fibrosis, severe asthma (continuous or repeated use of systemic corticosteroids), moderate COPD
- Diabetes - All diabetes (Type 1 and 2) except where HbA1c ≥58mmol/mol
- Inherited metabolic diseases - Disorders of intermediary metabolism not fulfilling criteria for very high risk
- Intellectual disability excluding Down Syndrome
- Obesity - BMI >35 Kg/m 2
- Severe mental illness - e.g. Schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, severe depression

How does that correlate with what you said here

- Cancer - Haematological - within 1 year
- Chronic kidney disease - eGFR <30ml/min
- Immunocompromise due to disease or treatment - High dose systemic steroids or living with HIV

...are recommended to get mRNA if available.

And why is it that - if they actually manage to get one from their GP/a GP referral to a MVC - that the vast majority of Cohort 7s are getting Pfizer/Moderna?

However, these are the non-shaded conditions, i.e. the things which qualify people for group 7 but which do not trigger the preference for mRNA:

Have you a source on this?

Lumen

ShineOn7 wrote: »

How does that correlate with what you said here

...

Have you a source on this?

As I posted above, source: 5a of https://www.hse.ie/eng/health/immuni...fo/guidelines/

ShineOn7 wrote: »

And why is it that - if they actually manage to get one from their GP/a GP referral to a MVC - that the vast majority of Cohort 7s are getting Pfizer/Moderna?

I don't know, but it might be that they're excluded from AZ+JJ due to age.

ShineOn7

A Cohort 7 relevant post from the main vaccines thread and yet another person let down by their GP

Vaccinated this morning. Cohort 7.

Got a PFO from my own GP who said they were doing no-one after cohort 4.

Got a bit of luck in that there was another GP I went to just once in the Summer for the same condition and he very kindly rang me and invited me in, as I was on his books. The GP who runs the clinic was working today and had one nurse also there. Both vaccinating lots of people and in fairness they seem like a very well run clinic.

Also, I contacted my consultant, whose secretary said they would also arrange a vaccination for me if something fell through.

My advise to anyone having difficulty in cohort 7 because their own GP let them down, if you have a consultant ring them first. Otherwise ring other GP practices. Or hold out for HSE to get you on your age base.

My advise to government. Get everyone online and administer by the cohorts better when we need booster shots in the winter or next year. People could self declare what cohort they and this could be randomly checked by a phone call to their GP.

My own GP did say they would forward my details onto HSE but I heard nothing via this channel.

ironictoaster

Finally got a call from the GP. 12th of June in the Helix.

Seems to be the luck of the draw.

A relative of mine who is a vaccinator in a hospital in Dublin has been vaccinating patients with the same condition as me for the past month.

krissovo

ShineOn7 wrote: »

One thousand percent report that fúcker to the Medical Council https://www.healthcomplaints.ie/specific-complaints-procedures/medical-council/

Write to your local TDs about them too

I would go out of my way to destroy a GP's business who was that blatantly ignorant towards Cohort 7, only then to vaccinate a healthy 30 year old



Can you leave them and go to another GP?

Being rural we do not have much opportunity for other GP's. By way of an update a local newspaper is going to run the story and I am in touch with a TD who is interested in support us.

Nigel Fairservice

I went to my outpatient clinic today at hospital, doctor asked me if I was vaccinated. I didn't bring it up as I thought I wasn't eligible due to the medication I'm on for my condition. Others with my condition on certain medications were vaccinated some time ago. Seemingly I could have had the vaccine weeks ago...might have been useful if someone told me that. Anyway, not sure if it would be any quicker than my normal age cohort at this stage. Still trying to get my sister sorted.

ShineOn7

https://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/hse-cyber-attack-vaccine-registration-for-people-at-high-risk-of-covid-19-delayed-1.4575989

HSE cyber attack: Vaccine registration for people at high risk of Covid-19 delayed

People who belong to cohort seven in the HSE’s vaccine rollout are struggling to get vaccinated, according to a group of high-risk patients who are highlighting their struggles through a Twitter hashtag,

#TheForgottenCohort.

Cohort seven includes all those aged 16 to 64 who are deemed high risk in relation to Covid-19 because they have certain medical conditions.

These conditions include chronic heart disease, liver disease, severe asthma, an intellectual disability excluding down syndrome, and severe mental illness.

Usually, these people would be vaccinated by their GP.
However, GPs are delivering vaccines through an opt-in system, and some doctors have not signed up to give jabs to this cohort.

An online portal was supposed to be set up by the HSE so these doctors could refer their patients to mass-vaccination centres.

Due to the HSE ransomware attack, this portal has not yet been set up.

The online registration portal, which is accessible to the general public, is also not accepting registrations from anyone under the age of 45.
Other people are in a predicament where their GP is vaccinating cohort seven, but they are still getting through the other cohorts.

Susan McGrady, who falls into cohort seven and is from Oranmore in Galway, has been consistently highlighting the issue on Twitter.

“We were initially told by [the] HSE website that we would be contacted by our GPs in early May, I got a bit impatient on the 10th and rang mine, to be told they aren’t vaccinating this group and I should wait for my age.

“On Thursday before the hack, the HSE said a portal would be opened that Saturday for non-vaccinating GPs to refer us, but the hack interfered with that.”

In the meantime, Ms McGrady’s GP referred her to the mass-vaccination centre, but she has been told she won’t be seen until July.
“We can’t get any more information and we are left in limbo.”

Dublin City Councillor for Cabra-Glasnevin, Cat O’Driscoll, is another person who is struggling to access the vaccine.

She has severe asthma and has been cocooning for over a year.
While her GP is vaccinating cohort 7, they are still making their way through their cohort 4 patients. “They can’t give me an indication of when I will get the vaccine.”

Ms O’Driscoll says it is “frustrating” to see healthy people 15 years older than her, who have not been cocooning, getting their jabs at mass-vaccination centres with relative ease.

“I live on my own, I haven’t seen many people, most of my engagements are on the phone or Zoom.

“A handful of times I may have gone for a socially distanced coffee with a friend. I haven’t hugged anyone since the last time I saw my family.”

Ms O’Driscoll adds that as a public representative, she is anxious to get back to engaging with her constituents in person.

She feels that GPs already have a heavy workload with their standard patient care, and people in cohort seven should be able to go to mass-vaccination centres. “We were always told pharmacists would be involved too, I don’t see why they can’t administer vaccines in the pharmacy. We need to take the pressure off the GPs.”

Up until this point, Ms O’Driscoll felt that everyone was in the pandemic together. However, due to the slow rollout for this cohort, she says many are starting to feel left behind as society reopens.

In response, the HSE said that people in cohort seven are being vaccinated through their GPs, similar to the arrangements that applied for cohort four.
“A referral pathway has been developed and was communicated to GPs to enable those patients whose primary care teams were not participating in this aspect of the programme to be referred electronically to the HSE and scheduled for vaccination.

“Unfortunately, the putting in place of this electronic referral system coincided with the cyberattack and it has been impacted by the cyber security issue.

“Therefore, it has not been possible to commence to date, but we are working to put alternative arrangements in place as soon as possible.”

The HSE added it could not provide any data on how many people in cohort seven have been vaccinated so far because of the cyber attack.

Figures on the Covid-19 information hub website state that as of May 11th, 2,910 people in cohort seven were vaccinated.

Up to that date, 2,906 people received their first dose, and just four received their second.

agoodpunt

I have an elderly relative 2 underline condiitons cant get vaccinated by GP or HSE disgraceful how the vunerable are been abandoned they stopped GPs supplies and now offering younger less risk is there any option to go NI route?