Professor Mike Holmes, who coordinates Covid vaccinations at the Askham Bar Community Care Centre, is worried about the impact of current soaring rates of the coronavirus on staffing in health services, which are already under pressure.

"This week we’ll be marking 74 years since the NHS began. It’s exciting that this birthday coincides with the week in which we formally launch our new Integrated Care Systems – a new era for our health and care organisations as they become statutorily required to work together.

Here at Nimbuscare we’ve been driving joined up working with our partners across the City for some time. Indeed, the opening of our new Acomb Garth Community Care Centre this month is part of this bold vision to connect people and communities in York, treating people for more than just ill health. The Centre will offer a large range of NHS services for local people, as well as social care, advice and wellbeing services.

We’re not taking our eye off the ball in terms of the vaccination service, however, and continue to offer Covid vaccines at our Askham Bar Community Care Centre. As we see the rates of Covid increase across the country, it’s more important than ever that people come and get their booster jabs. The figures clearly show that it is those people who have not had a booster who are getting the virus more severely and we need to protect those who are vulnerable.

The latest ONS survey results show an increase in Covid rates across the country which is largely due to two fast spreading variants of Omicron. People need to be sensible, continue to practice good hand hygiene and wear masks in crowded places, especially if they are vulnerable.

It is the impact on staffing levels within health and social care services which concerns me. Given the pressures we are under at the moment, we need to keep our workforce and others, healthy and at work.

You can book in for your Spring booster jab (the forth or fifth jab ) via nhs.uk or just walk in to the site at Askham Bar which is open all day Monday to Friday and Saturday mornings.

We are also ready for the launch of the next round of boosters – the Autumn boosters – as soon as we’re given the go ahead. This will increase our immunity over the winter period and protect us better to reduce the number of people getting very poorly and being hospitalised.

This booster will be offered to the over 65’s, frontline health and social care workers, residents and staff in care homes for older adults and adults aged 16 to 64 in a clinical risk group.

We held our first MSK physiotherapy cinics for people with muscular and joint pain and this pilot service will be moved to our Acomb Garth centre soon.

Our team also vaccinated people from Ukraine at York City Church, working with the City of York Council to make sure these families received all their important vaccinations to keep them protected.

Last week I joined a number of our York GP Practice colleagues in London for the RCGP Primary Care conference and the BMA conference. These were important events for us to showcase our work nationally, as well as present a united voice in support of General Practice. We face major challenges with increasing demand for appointments ,as well as shortages of staff at all levels. The pressures we are under cannot be sustained and GPs continue to press the Government to take action.

Finally, I would like to extend my condolences, from everyone at Nimbuscare, to the family of Harry Gration who died recently. He will be sadly missed and we are so grateful for his wonderful support to us last year as he visited to mark our 100,000th vaccine milestone."