'I got Covid booster jab because of my elderly dad'

For Mike Casey, the decision to get vaccinated against Covid was not for him but for his 93-year-old father who he would be caring for over Christmas.

"It's about protecting me and subsequently my father," he said.

Mr Casey was one of a handful of people to get the booster jab at a clinic in Cradley Heath on Tuesday.

Appointments for Covid vaccination for the over-65s and clinically vulnerable stopped on December 15 but pop-up clinics in the Black Country were trying to catch more.

So-called vaccine "champions" were out in Cradley Heath to try to persuade shoppers but, in two-and-a-half hours on Tuesday, only six people came forward.

Although people may have felt they had been jabbed more than ever before in the last few years it remained really important, said Birmingham GP Dr Mohit Mandiratta. 

"It is the best way to protect yourself, flu and Covid are still around, and in the winter months we know they will spread more easily," he added.

Even if most might only have a mild illness, there will be people - such as those with a long-term health condition - who could be very vulnerable, Dr Mandiratta warned.

A spring booster vaccine will be offered to people at most risk of serious illness from the disease to protect them in summer 2024.

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