FEATURE COVID-19
© GettyImages / Ridofranz
Supporting the COVID-19 vaccination programme
Ridofranz
At a crucial point in the government ’ s mass vaccination programme , Jayne Seagrave talks to OTnews about her experience of becoming a COVID-19 vaccinator
During the pandemic , many occupational therapists have been asked to work in new ways , to
expand their skills and create new innovations in practice to support patient care during the most challenging of times , and my role was no exception .
I work in a large acute hospital and normally have two job roles ; one as a senior occupational therapist on our trauma and orthopaedic wards and the other as an allied health professions ( AHP ) practice learning facilitator , where I co-ordinate AHP placements and provide support to students and educators .
At the beginning of the pandemic , I was asked to develop and deliver training to upskill therapy staff being redeployed into inpatient areas and was redeployed to the wards full-time myself , for a short while . However , never did I imagine I would be asked to be part of the COVID-19 vaccination programme . At the end of November last year , I was informed , alongside other AHP colleagues in the learning and education department , that we would be redeployed for an element of our working week to the vaccination programme .
18 OTnews February 2021