Vaccine information for COVID-19

Types of vaccine

Booster doses (from September 2023):

Pfizer Comirnaty BA.4-5 Bivalent vaccine

Bivalent vaccines are used for booster doses and help protect against the original strains of COVID-19 and the more recent Omicron variants.

All have been shown to be safe and effective in clinical trials.

We also offer vaccines for children considered At Risk. Pfizer Comirnaty infant paediatric vaccine is provided for 6 months to 4 years old and Pfizer Comirnaty paediatric vaccine for children aged 5 years to 11 years.

In Jersey our vaccination programme is aligned with that of the UK.

All vaccines have been approved by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulator Agency (MRHA) and the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI).

Protection and immunity

The COVID-19 vaccine reduces your chance of suffering from severe illness and developing complications.

It is important that you keep up with your vaccination schedule which is different for different age groups.

A booster dose helps increase the protection you provided from your primary course of the vaccine. It is important that you get your booster once you are eligible as the protection from your primary course vaccines will reduce over time.

It takes a few weeks for your body to build up protection from the vaccine. Like all medicines, no vaccine is completely effective. You should continue to take recommended precautions to avoid infection.

Some people may still get COVID-19 despite having a vaccination, but this should be less severe.

After receiving your vaccine, you will still need to follow public health guidance to protect yourself and others.

You should continue to:

stay home if you are unwell
take a LFT if you have any symptoms
take a LFT before visiting someone who is at risk or at hospital or care setting
wear a face mask where advised
wash your hands carefully and frequently
ensure good ventilation

Protecting yourself and others from coronavirus

Passing on the virus

Most vaccines reduce the overall risk of infection and reduces the chance of passing on the virus, but some vaccinated people may get mild or asymptomatic infection and can still pass the virus on.

Any infection in a vaccinated person will be less severe and that viral shedding will be shortened.

Dose intervals

Book a vaccination appointment

Not at risk

Age	Eligible for not at risk	Wait between doses not at risk	Wait between doses if you've had a positive test
5 to 11	2 paediatric primary doses	12 weeks	12 weeks
12 to 15	2 primary doses	12 weeks	12 weeks
16 to 17	2 primary doses plus a booster dose	12 weeks	12 weeks
18+	2 primary doses plus a booster dose	8 weeks (booster 12 weeks after second dose)	4 weeks
75+ or resident in a care home for older adults	2 primary doses plus a booster dose plus spring booster dose	8 weeks (booster 12 weeks after last dose)	4 weeks

At risk

This includes living with an immunosuppressed individual

Age	Eligible for at risk	Wait between doses at risk	Wait between doses if you've had a positive test
5 to 11	2 paediatric primary doses	8 weeks	4 weeks
12 to 15	2 primary doses plus a booster dose	8 weeks (booster 12 weeks after second dose)	4 weeks
16 to 17	2 primary doses plus a booster dose	8 weeks (booster 12 weeks after second dose)	4 weeks
18+	2 primary doses plus a booster dose	8 weeks (booster 12 weeks after second dose)	4 weeks
75+ or resident in a care home for older adults	2 primary doses plus a booster dose plus spring booster dose	8 weeks (booster 12 weeks after last dose)	4 weeks

Immunosuppressed

If you are immunosuppressed, you should discuss your vaccine timings with your health care specialist

Age	Eligible for immunosuppressed	Wait between doses for immunosuppressed	Wait between doses if you've had a positive test
5 to 11	2 primary paediatric doses (3 if severely immunosuppressed)	8 weeks	4 weeks
12 to 15	3 primary doses plus a booster dose plus spring booster dose	8 weeks (booster 12 weeks after last dose)	4 weeks
16 to 17	3 primary doses plus a booster dose plus spring booster dose	8 weeks (booster 12 weeks last third dose)	4 weeks
18+	3 primary doses plus a booster dose plus spring booster dose	8 weeks (booster 12 weeks after last dose)	4 weeks

Pregnancy and breastfeeding

The COVID-19 vaccines available in the UK have been shown to be effective and to have a good safety profile. These vaccines do not contain live coronavirus and cannot infect a pregnant woman or her unborn baby in the womb.

If you are pregnant, you don't need to do anything differently when booking your appointment. When you arrive for your vaccination at Fort Regent. Make the vaccination team aware you are pregnant so they can offer you the Pfizer/BioNTech (Comirnaty) or Moderna (Spikevax) vaccine.

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has advised that pregnant women should be offered COVID-19 vaccines at the same time as people of the same age or risk group.

Evidence on COVID-19 vaccines is being continuously reviewed by the World Health Organization and the regulatory bodies in the UK, USA, Canada and Europe.

Pfizer/BioNTech (Comirnaty) and Moderna (Spikevax) vaccines are the preferred vaccines for pregnant women of any age, and any stage of pregnancy, who are coming for their vaccine.

Although the overall risk from COVID-19 disease in pregnant women and their new-born babies is low, in later pregnancy some women may become seriously unwell and need hospital treatment. Catching COVID-19 and needing hospital treatment as a pregnant woman can double your chances of having a still birth. Women with COVID-19 disease are also 2 to 3 times more likely to have their babies early than women without COVID-19.

Pregnant women with COVID-19 have a much higher risk of intensive care admission than women of the same age who are not pregnant.

Pregnant women with underlying clinical conditions are at even higher risk of suffering serious complications from COVID-19. It is therefore very important to get vaccinated.

Risk factors for pregnant women

You are at more risk from COVID-19 than women of the same age who are not pregnant if you have underlying medical conditions such as:

immune problems
diabetes
high blood pressure
heart disease
asthma

Or if you are:

overweight
over the age of 35
in your third trimester of pregnancy (over 28 weeks)
of black and Asian minority ethnic background

Getting pregnant

There is no need to avoid getting pregnant after COVID-19 vaccination. There is no evidence that COVID-19 vaccines have any effect on fertility or your chances of becoming pregnant.

If you are pregnant

COVID-19 vaccines offer pregnant women the best protection against COVID-19 disease which can be serious in later pregnancy for some women.

The first dose of COVID-19 vaccine will give you good protection. You need the second dose and booster dose to get longer lasting protection.

Breastfeeding

The benefits of breast-feeding are well known.

The JCVI has recommended that the vaccines can be received whilst breastfeeding. This is in line with recommendations from the USA and the World Health Organization.

The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) and Royal College of Midwives (RCM) have a decision guide and other information you may find helpful.

If you would like to discuss COVID-19 vaccination in regards to pregnancy, you should contact your GP, midwife, obstetrician or speak to the healthcare professional during your visit to the vaccination centre.

Side effects

Like all medicines, vaccines can sometimes cause side effects. Most of these are mild and short-term, and not everyone gets them.

Very common side effects include:

having a painful, heavy feeling and tenderness in the arm where you had your injection. This tends to be worst around 1 to 2 days after the vaccine
feeling tired
headache
general aches, or mild flu like symptoms

Although feeling feverish is not uncommon for 2 to 3 days, a high temperature is unusual and may mean you have COVID-19 or another infection. An uncommon side effect is the swelling of the glands. These symptoms normally last less than a week.

You should rest and take the normal dose of paracetamol (follow the advice in the packaging). Do not exceed the normal dose.

Very rare cases of inflammation of the heart (myocarditis and pericarditis)

Worldwide, there have also been recent, rare cases of inflammation of the heart called myocarditis or pericarditis reported after COVID-19 vaccines, although it is not yet clear that these are caused by the vaccines.

These cases have been seen mostly in younger men in the USA within several days after vaccination. Most of these people recovered and felt better following rest and simple treatments. You should seek medical advice urgently if you experience:

chest pain
shortness of breath
feelings of having a fast-beating, fluttering, or pounding heart

If your symptoms get worse

If your symptoms seem to get worse or if you are concerned, contact your GP or healthcare professional. If you do seek advice from a doctor or nurse, make sure you tell them about your vaccination (show them your vaccination card) so that they can assess you properly.

You can also report suspected side effects of vaccines and medicines through the Yellow Card scheme. The Yellow Card scheme is the UK system for collecting information on suspected adverse drug reactions to medicines.

You can't catch COVID-19 from the vaccine

You can't catch COVID-19 from the vaccine but it's possible to have caught COVID-19 and not realise you have the symptoms until after your vaccination appointment.

Although a mild fever can occur within a day or two of vaccination, if you have any other COVID-19 symptoms or your fever lasts longer: