A positive to come from the pandemic was the creation of our roving team. Originally set up to deliver Covid 19 vaccines to housebound and vulnerable residents, our roving team now deliver other vaccines, carry out health checks and support residents who may have complex needs.
Our roving team also support the GP practices to bring additional services to their most vulnerable patients. They support our practices by undertaking health questionnaires to understand where our patients needs are. They are experts in helping patients who are nervous about needles or just have anxieties around health professionals.
They have an expert team of staff who help patients to understand where best to go for help – care navigation is particularly important for patients with complex needs.
Our roving team won the Health Innovation Award at the North East London NHS Primary Care Workforce Awards in December 2022, for their work with Newham’s most vulnerable communities. Some of their key achievements include:
- 6568 vaccines were delivered by the roving team
between February 2021 and May 2022. - Residents in older peoples care homes and
supported living accommodation were supported to
access their vaccine - 600 people with learning disabilities were supported
to access the vaccine - 625 Vials of Vitamin D supplements were
distributed to our most vulnerable older residents - 2,000 health checks have been undertaken
- 12,000 people with clinical vulnerabilities ( aged 5
upwards) have been called - 33,000 calls have been made by the Roving team
booked appointments to clinically and extremely
vulnerable patients