THE NHS has issued an urgent call for vaccinators to "step up" and support the acceleration of Covid booster jabs.

NHS bosses in Herefordshire and Worcestershire have said they are expanding the booster programme to offer protection to as many people as quickly as possible.

This includes extending the hours of vaccination clinics, they said.

But leaders also need more vaccinators to come forward to increase the capacity, with latest Government figures showing 79,549 of Herefordshire 193,000 population have had a booster dose.

The figures, last updated yesterday (Monday), showed 151,742 have had one dose of the Covid vaccine and 141,602 have had a second dose.

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The Herefordshire and Worcestershire Clinical Commissioning Group said: "We are working to increase capacity, offer extended opening hours, stand up more vaccination centres and support more GPs and community pharmacies to be able to offer lifesaving jabs across our two counties.

"Any registered, or recently retired, vaccinators looking for full-time or part-time roles on a permanent or ad-hoc basis are asked to get in touch the Covid-19 vaccination recruitment team at hw.recruitment@nhs.net."

In Herefordshire, the NHS has said appointments, which can be booked via its website, will continue to be added for a number of sites.

The sites, according to the CCG, are Elgar House in Holmer Road, Hereford; Day Lewis Pharmacy in Grandstand Road, Hereford; Bromyard Public Hall in Rowberry Street, and Kington Medical Practice in Eardisley Road.

These sites are not offering walk-ins, according to the NHS website.

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Dr Ian Tait, GP and clinical chair for the CCG said: “I would encourage any vaccinators in our two counties to reach out to our recruitment team. Any support for our local NHS this winter will always be greatly received.

“We thank our health and care staff who are already working incredibly hard to deliver Covid-19 vaccines as swiftly as possible, but the threat posed by Omicron is significant and we need more people to join the vaccination effort.

“Some NHS staff will also be redeployed to the vaccination programme so that they can focus on protecting the local population as quickly as possible and support with planning for the extra vaccinations.

“Please remember to be kind to NHS staff and volunteers, treating them with respect and patience, as everyone is working incredibly hard to deliver the Covid-19 vaccination programme alongside other essential NHS services.”

The NHS vaccination programme will offer every adult in Herefordshire and Worcestershire the chance to book a Covid-19 booster vaccine by the end of the year.

The NHS said the best way to get your booster quickly is by booking online or by calling 119.