Vaccination progress in Nenagh

Almost all of the staff at Nenagh hospital have now received initial vaccinations as part of the HSE's continuing rollout of Covid-19 vaccines to frontline healthcare workers.

There was a troubling reminder of the need for caution last week as the number of new cases of the virus increased in north Tipperary, having previously been on the decline.

But UL Hospitals Group reported that approximately 95% of frontline staff at the hard-hit Nenagh hospital have received their first dose vaccinations. Of these staff, 55% are now fully vaccinated with the remaining 45% awaiting the second dose.

All older persons HSE residential units and private nursing homes in North Tipperary have now had Dose 1 and Dose 2 vaccinations. Nenagh’s Abbey Court Hotel will be one of 37 centres nationally used to vaccinate the wider population in support of the GP-led element of the vaccine roll-out. These centres will come on stream in late March/early April.

Nenagh Sinn Féin representative Damian O’Donoghue has said the public needs a guarantee that geography will not delay the delivery of vaccines to any Co Tipperary community. “In Nenagh we have witnessed the vast shortcomings that were involved in the rollout of the vaccine for staff at Nenagh hospital,” Mr O'Donoghue said. “Since hearing this week that in parts of the country the delivery of vaccines to GPs was haphazard, I have formed the view that we must be given a guarantee that rural Ireland and parts of the country that lie outside of the main cities are not left behind in the delivery process.

“The Nenagh hospital debacle has taught me that we cannot afford to assume anything. I have written to the Health Minister seeking a guarantee that equal access is given to all, no matter where they live. The people of Nenagh, and the citizens of every community across Co Tipperary, need certainty that geography will not delay the delivery or the rollout of the vaccination programme,” Mr O'Donoghue stated.

VIRUS NUMBERS RISE

The number of confirmed cases of coronavirus increased slightly last month in three of the four north Tipp Local Electoral Areas (LEAs) of Nenagh, Newport, Roscrea-Templemore and Thurles. There were 42 confirmed cases of the virus in the Nenagh LEA between February 9th and 22nd, up from 34 in the previous recorded period.

Newport also saw an increase in cases from 30 up to 41, while in Roscrea the numbers were up from 11 to 23. Thurles had one case fewer than before and, with a total of 17 new cases, was home to the lowest number of new infections in Tipperary. Carrick-on-Suir had the highest number in the county with 57 new cases reported.

County Tipperary continued to have one of the lowest rates of infection in the country with a 14-day incidence of 188 per 100,000, well below the national rate of 240. Testing continues at the HSE's North Tipperary community testing centre set up at the former aluminium factory at Tyone, Nenagh, where 466 Covid-19 tests were completed between February 18th and 25th. This represents less than a third of the number of tests carried out there in the week after Christmas. A total of 538 tests were planned last week but 72 appointments were missed.