FAQs

There is no need to avoid pregnancy after the COVID-19 vaccination.

• The main symptoms of COVID-19 are a high temperature, a new, continuous cough or a loss or change to your normal sense of smell or taste.
• If you think you may have symptoms, use the NHS 111 online service online for information and advice, and follow the guidance for households with possible or confirmed COVID-19 infection.
• You should tell your midwife or maternity team that you have symptoms of COVID-19.
• If you feel your symptoms are worsening or if you are not getting better, this may be a sign that you are developing a more severe infection that requires specialised care. You should contact your maternity team, GP, or use the NHS 111 online service for further information and advice. In an emergency, call 999.
• Seek medical advice as early as possible if you have any questions or concerns about you or your baby.

Current evidence from the UK suggests that pregnant women are no more likely to get COVID-19 than other healthy adults, but they are at slightly increased risk of becoming severely unwell if they do catch COVID-19, and are more likely to have pregnancy complications like preterm birth or stillbirth. Roughly two-thirds of pregnant women with COVID-19 have no symptoms at all (also known as being asymptomatic). Most pregnant women who do have symptoms only have mild cold or flu-like symptoms. However, a small number of pregnant women can become unwell with COVID-19. Pregnant women who catch COVID-19 are at slightly increased risk of becoming severely unwell compared to non-pregnant women, particularly in the third trimester.

Studies have shown that there are higher rates of admission to intensive care units for pregnant women with COVID-19 compared to non-pregnant women with COVID-19. It is important to note that this may be because clinicians are more likely to take a more cautious approach when deciding whether to admit someone to the intensive care unit when a woman is pregnant.

At present, it is unclear whether pregnancy will impact on the proportion of women who experience ‘long COVID’ or a post COVID-19 condition.

In the UK, information about all pregnant women requiring admission to hospital with COVID-19 is recorded in a registry called the UK Obstetric Surveillance System (UKOSS).

In pregnant women with symptoms of COVID-19, it is twice as likely that their baby will be born early, exposing the baby to the risk of prematurity. A recent study has also found that pregnant women who tested positive for COVID-19 at the time of birth were more likely to develop pre-eclampsia, more likely to need an emergency caesarean and their risk of stillbirth was twice as high, although the actual number of stillbirths remains low.

Current evidence suggests that if you have the virus it is unlikely to cause problems with your baby’s development, and there have been no reports of this so far.

There is also no evidence to suggest that COVID-19 infection in early pregnancy increases the chance of a miscarriage.

Transmission of the COVID-19 from a woman to her baby during pregnancy or childbirth (which is known as vertical transmission) seems to be uncommon. Whether or not a newborn baby gets COVID-19 is not affected by mode of birth, feeding choice or whether the woman and baby stay together. It is important to emphasise that in most of the reported cases of newborn babies developing COVID-19 very soon after birth, the babies remained well.

Studies have shown that there is a two to three times increased risk of giving birth prematurely for pregnant women who become very unwell with COVID-19. In most cases this was because it was recommended that their babies were born early for the benefit of the women’s health and to enable them to recover. Babies born before full term (before 37 weeks) are vulnerable to problems associated with being born premature – the earlier in the pregnancy a baby is born, the more vulnerable they are.

The UK Obstetric Surveillance Study (UKOSS) report from January 2021 describes 1,148 pregnant women with COVID-19 who were admitted to hospital between March and September 2020. Nearly one in five women with symptomatic COVID-19 gave birth prematurely. However, women who tested positive for COVID-19 but had no symptoms were not more likely to give birth prematurely. The babies of women with COVID-19 were more likely to be admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), but almost all these babies did well. There was no statistically significant increase in stillbirth rate or infant death for babies born to women who had COVID-19. Not all the babies were tested, but overall, only 1 baby in 50 tested positive for COVID-19, suggesting that transmission of the infection to the baby is low.

A recent study from the UK compared 3,500 women who had COVID-19 at the time they gave birth to over 340,000 women who did not have COVID-19 at the time they gave birth. This study found that pregnant women who tested positive for COVID-19 at the time of birth were twice as likely to have a preterm birth, and their risk of stillbirth was twice as high, although the actual number of stillbirths remains low.

Yes you can. You may wish to consider the timing of having the COVID vaccine during your fertility treatment. Taking into account that some people may get mild side effects, such as feeling tired, a bit achy or sick in the few days after the vaccination. Side effects that may not be wanted during treatment. Your medical team will be able to advise you about the best time for your situation. 

There is nothing in the vaccine that can affect fertility of men or women.

No. The COVID-19 vaccine will not protect you against the flu.

Medicines, including vaccines, are highly regulated - and that is no different for the approved COVID-19 vaccine.

There are a number of enablers that have made this groundbreaking medical advancement possible and made it possible to develop them relatively quickly compared to other medicines.

1. The different phases of the clinical trial were delivered to overlap instead of running sequentially which sped up the clinical process.
2. There was a rolling assessment of data packages as soon as they were available so experts at the MHRA could review as the trial was being delivered, ask questions along the way and request extra information as needed - as opposed to getting all information at the end of a trial.
3. Clinical trials managed to recruit people very quickly as a global effort meant thousands of people were willing to volunteer.

THE JCVI recommends only certain groups of children and the young people are vaccinated. This is due a combination of factors including risk of getting seriously ill and passing it to others who may become seriously ill.  

Getting your COVID-19 vaccination as soon as you can, should protect you and may help to protect your family and those you care for.

The COVID-19 vaccine should help reduce the rates of serious illness and save lives and will therefore reduce pressure on the NHS and social care services.

Yes. The MHRA, the official UK regulator authorising licensed use of medicines and vaccines by healthcare professionals, has said these vaccines are safe and highly effective.

The NHS would not offer any COVID-19 vaccinations to the public until it is safe to do so.

As with any medicine, vaccines are highly regulated products. There are checks at every stage in the development and manufacturing process, and continued monitoring once it has been authorised and is being used in the wider population.

A single dose of the vaccine does provide a good level of protection from COVID-19, but the second dose is important to ensure lasting protection.

Yes, the vaccine can be given if you have had a positive antibody test.

Like all medicines, the vaccine can cause side effects. Most side effects of the Covid-19 vaccine are mild and should not last longer than a week, such as:

• a sore arm where the needle went in
• feeling tired
• a headache
• feeling achy

Yes. The flu vaccine does not protect you from COVID-19.

There are no current plans to vaccinated children and young people who are outside the eligible groups. However the JCVI is continually reviewing evidence on this matter and will advise the government if it decides that a change of approach is required.  

Getting vaccinated is just as important for those who have already had COVID-19 as it is for those who haven't. 

As with all new viruses, we won't know how long those who have recovered from COVID-19 their level of immunity. 

Protection against COVID-19 does not happen instantly after your first dose, it usually takes 2-3 weeks before you get good antibody response and even then, you need to get your second dose to get the best possible protection. 

Analysis by PHE (Public Health England) shows that two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine are highly effective against hospitalisation from the Delta variant. 

- The Pfizer vaccine is 96% effectiveness against hospitalisation after two doses.

- The Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine is 92% effective against hospitalisation after 2 weeks. 

- The Moderna vaccine has been shown to be 94% effective in it's phase three clinical trials.  

Yes, they should get vaccinated. There is no evidence of any safety concerns from vaccinating individuals with a past history of COVID-19 infection, or with detectable COVID-19 antibody so people who have had COVID-19 disease (whether confirmed or suspected) can still receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

You can have the vaccine 28 days after you had a positive test for COVID-19 or 28 days after your symptoms started, so you may need to wait.

Health Benefits;

Vaccines are the best way to protect people from COVID and have saved more than 120,000 lives in the UK alone 

Vaccinated people are far less likely to get COVID-19 with symptoms, admitted to hospital or die from COVID-19. There is also evidence to suggest that they are less likely to pass the virus on to others. 

Getting back to normal life;

With more than 24 million infections prevented, vaccines are keeping people safe and helping us to reclaim our freedoms so we can return to normal life. 

People who have received two doses of a NHS vaccine no longer need to quarantine when returning to England.  

Catch up arrangements will be in place that the school age immunisation service provider will be able to share with the school.

The medicine regulator has confirmed that the Pfizer vaccination is safe and effective to be used for 12-17 year olds. The vaccine has has rigorous safety reviews, quality and effectiveness of the vaccine in this age group.

Like all school based vaccination programmes, the vaccines will be administered by the school age immunisation provider, working closely with the school. 

Walk-ins from this age group can not be accepted, there are no plans to make walk-ins available. 

Booking via the National Booking Service is not presently planned for children in this age group. 

JCVI advises that the booster vaccine is offered no earlier than six months after completion of the primary vaccine course (your second dose). 

Rollout of a third vaccine dose to the most vulnerable to COVID-19 in order to maintain protection against severe COVID-19 throughout the winter months to protect the NHS. 

The JCVI advises that the flu and Covid vaccines can be co-administered. It is important people take up the offer of both vaccines when they receive it. People are encouraged to get both vaccinations as soon as possible rather than waiting for the possibility of getting them both at the same time. 

At present is it not known whether recurrent boosters will be required in the long term. This advice on booster vaccination only applies to this highly active phase of the pandemic. This programme is timed to maximise the impact of a booster programme on individual protection against severe disease and to protect the NHS during the winter months. 

No - you must not come to the centre if you have any of the COVID symptoms, including a high temperature, a new continuous cough and a loss of or change to your sense of smell or taste. If you have any COVID symptoms you must self-isolate and book a different test at www.gov.uk/get-coronavirus-test or by calling 119. The COVID Test and Collect Centre in Middleton Grange Shopping Centre is only for people who don't have any COVID symptoms.

Alongside the national vaccine roll-out, regular testing is an essential part of the easing of restrictions, helping identify variants of the virus and stopping individual cases from becoming outbreaks. The Government is encouraging all adults to get tested twice a week - even after they have been vaccinated - to help us on the path back to normal life.

Particularly encouraged to get tested regularly are those people who come into a lot of direct contact with other people - for example taxi drivers, supermarket and other shop staff, tradespeople, takeaway staff, carers, social workers and nursery staff. 

Craig Blundred, Hartlepool Borough Council's Director of Public Health, said: "Around 1 in 3 people with COVID-19 do not experience any symptoms and may be spreading the virus unwittingly. Rapid testing detects cases quickly, meaning positive cases can isolate immediately, and by making rapid tests available to everyone, more cases will be detected, breaking chains of transmission and saving lives.

"However, it’s important to remember that there's no single silver bullet in the fight against COVID-19 - we must all still continue to follow the current social distancing guidelines – hands, face, space, fresh air, and go for our vaccinations when called."

No - they are free.

Please speak to our booking team before you book on 01429 523330 during normal office hours.

Yes - unless you have a medical exemption you must attend wearing your face mask.

You'll be given full details on the booking page or when you call the booking number (see the introduction above for the link to the booking web page and the booking telephone number), but the most important thing to bring with you is a mobile phone as you will receive your test result by text. Because of the data protection laws, you can't use someone else's mobile phone.

If you have your NHS Number to hand when you come to the testing centre you will only have to register once with your full details, which will save you time at the testing centre if you later book subsequent tests. 

No - please arrive at your allocated time - do not arrive early. We must maintain a regulated flow of people arriving at the testing centre.

Yes - there is disabled access. If you have any particular requirements, please let us know in advance when booking so that we can make your visit as easy as possible.  

For social distancing reasons, we ask people to please attend their test appointment on their own. However, if you do need some personal support, such as help with mobility for example, you are welcome to bring with you a family member or carer, provided they are in your 'bubble.' However, you must not bring with you anyone who has any COVID symptoms.

Parking is available in the Council-run car parks around Middleton Grange Shopping Centre, many of which currently offer free parking for the first three hours. In those which are offering free parking, please ensure that you take a free ticket from the machine and display it in your vehicle.

Please call our team on 01429 523330 during normal office hours and they'll be happy to help.