A PENSIONER left a lengthy queue to get their jag at a vaccination site in Alexandria due to the long wait time, according to the area's MSP.

Despite residents being given allocated timeslots, Jackie Baillie says that on both Friday and Saturday of last week there were lengthy waits at the community centre in the town.

Similar problems had been experienced at a vaccination centre in Helensburgh on Wednesday and Thursday, when elderly residents attending for their Covid booster and flu jags waited two hours past their appointment times.

This followed problems in Helensburgh on Wednesday and Thursday which saw elderly residents called for their Covid booster and flu jags waiting two hours past their appointment times before receiving their vaccines.

Ms Baillie said she had been contacted by several constituents frustrated at the long waits in the Alexandria queue on Friday and Saturday - and has now asked NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde for an explanation.

Ms Baillie said: “The vaccinators are working really hard but there were simply not enough of them to cope with the number of people invited to be vaccinated.

"Asking older people to stand for hours at a time, outdoors, is not practical.

“We have seen this all before. Why were lessons not learned when we saw pensioners waiting in the rain last year at this same venue for their Covid jags?

“I have written to NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and cabinet secretary for health Humza Yousaf to find out what has gone wrong and what steps are being taken to sort this problem out before more people are affected.

“I thank the vaccinators, who are working extremely hard to get jags into the arms of those most vulnerable to Covid, but it must be disheartening when they are faced with such massive queues.

"It’s not their fault they are being overwhelmed by the number of people invited to attend.

“It is incredibly worrying that because of this shambles, at least one woman has left without even getting her jag.

"Vaccination is the best way to avoid serious infection from Covid and to protect people during the flu season. The health authorities should be doing all they can to encourage people to attend for their boosters and that means ensuring that there are enough vaccinators.”

A NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde spokesperson said: "During the rollout of our winter vaccination programme, which covers COVID-19 boosters and flu, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde’s will administer more than 630,000 vaccinations.  

"We have recently experienced some unexpected staff absence and would like to apologise to anyone who has had to wait longer than expected. Teams are working hard to redeploy vaccinators to the site, where available, and are actively engaging with people to provide a suitable alternative appointment where appropriate.  

"We would like to thank members of the public for their patience and the support they have given our vaccination teams, who are working hard to ensure those receiving their vaccinations are administered both swiftly and safely.  

"To help prevent waits and to allow our vaccination teams to process people in a timely manner, we are asking members of our local communities to arrive only a few minutes ahead of their allocated appointment time. 

"If anyone is concerned about accessing a clinic, we would encourage them to call the national helpline on 0800 030 801."