AROUND half of people booked to get their Covid vaccination at the Hydro in Glasgow failed to turn up to their appointment, it has been reported.
BBC Scotland has said that a “considerable number” of people did not show up for appointments at the city’s main vaccination centre at the SSE Hydro on Saturday and Sunday.
It is understood that this averaged out to around half of all appointments being missed over the two days.
On Saturday, “fewer than half” of those with appointments went to their appointments on Saturday, while a little over half of those who had appointments booked got their jag on Sunday.
The Hydro, which replaced the Louisa Jordan as the city's main vaccination hub, has a minimum capacity to vaccinate 4000 people per day but this can be ramped up to 10,000 per day.
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde said there had been an "unusual amount" of cancellations and non-attendances for vaccinations at The Hydro over the weekend.
Health Secretary Humza Yousaf, who received his first jab today, said there had been a "slight increase" in those not attending appointments.
He said: "My plea would be to please attend and if you can't attend the appointment you're given of course you do have details where you can switch appointments, rearrange and reschedule - which is really important to do."
Glasgow currently has the second highest coronavirus rate in Scotland at 136.8 cases per 100,000, with 866 new positive tests recorded in the last week. Topping the list in Clackmannanshire with the highest case rate at 139.7 per 100,000, but with only 72 positive tests over the past week.
READ MORE: Coronavirus in Scotland: Vaccine registration opens for over-18s
Glasgow is now the only council area in Scotland currently under level three restrictions due to the increase in rates and concerns over the prevalence of the April-02 variant, also called the Indian variant.
Yousaf also said this new variant meant it was "vitally important" that people receive both doses of the vaccination when it is offered.
He said: "The second dose offers greater and longer lasting protection, and should not be missed.
"We want everyone to come forward for a vaccine and we continue to work with community organisations to address any barriers people may experience to ensure that everyone is able to get an appointment.
"The vaccines we have are extremely safe and highly effective."
An NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde spokesperson said: "We want to thank everyone who has come forward for a vaccine so far. We've had incredible success to date and this is a testament to the hard work of all those staff from across NHSGGC who have been involved in the roll-out of the programme. We have now vaccinated over 98% of people over the age 50 with their first dose.
"We recognise that there were an unusual amount of cancellations and non-attendances for vaccinations at The Hydro over the weekend. We are looking into the details further to understand the reasons behind this.
"We strongly encourage everyone to take up the opportunity to be vaccinated once they are invited."
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