This past month I have had a number of meetings in relation to community pharmacies and their utilisation in the vaccine rollout. Earlier in February, it was a pleasure to meet with representatives from Community Pharmacy Wales to discuss their role as, currently, they are not being used as vaccination sites. However, with lots of experience delivering winter 'Flu vaccination programmes, I believe pharmacies across Wales are being under utilised and could be a really vital resource for ensuring the excellent progress in the vaccine rollout is continued through the year. This is also something that I also raised with the Prime Minister, who I know is taking a very keen interest in Welsh health affairs and the vaccine rollout.
Following these meetings, the use of existing infrastructure such as pharmacies in the vaccine rollout was also raised with Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board by my colleagues and I. As a result of this, I am pleased to now hear more about the health board's successful pilot of four pharmacies in Gwynedd. This, I am told, has provided the health board with some useful information about how pharmacies might be integrated into the vaccine rollout.
Based on the findings, the health board has now asked their community pharmacy contractors to register their interest in providing a Covid-19 vaccination programme in their pharmacy. This will include preparing facilities for storing the vaccine and delivery of the programme in their pharmacies, as well as staff training and other operational preparations. Based on the expressions of interest received to date, the health board anticipates commissioning around 80 community pharmacies to provide a service in North Wales, once vaccine supplies allow. Vaccination through community pharmacies will be using the AstraZeneca vaccine.
This is really great news and I am pleased that the hard work of many across North Wales to see the vaccine distribution expanded to pharmacies has paid off. Going forward, my colleagues and I will continue conversations with the health board about this in order to push this further.