The resources have been developed by NHS Education for Scotland (NES) in partnership with Public Health Scotland (PHS).  

The resources are designed to support:  

• New immunisers (registered and healthcare support workers) 
• Returning staff (or redeployed staff) who may have participated in immunisation delivery previously but perhaps not for some time.  
• Current and experienced vaccination staff.  

Vaccinators should ensure that they follow local educational and clinical governance arrangements in relation to knowledge and proficiency to undertake vaccination. 

It is recommended that vaccinators check the COVID-19 Green Book chapter 14a and discuss their learning needs (including clinical skills and induction/mandatory training) with their employer prior to embarking upon the educational resources on these pages.

Please note:  These educational resources continue to be updated as required to support this programme but do not replace the clinical judgement of practitioners. Practitioners should refer to the Public Health England Green Book Chapter and equivalent authorities documents.

This learning pathway resource will help you to identify the most relevant learning materials to your role within the vaccination programme.

Those new to vaccination practice may find it useful to undertake the Promoting Effective Immunisation Practice programme for registered practitioners or for healthcare support workers.If you are a returning vaccinator, you may find the self-appraisal tool useful to find out what learning is most relevant to your level of knowledge and experience.     

The learning resources for the COVID-19 Vaccination Programme on these pages are split into core knowledge, vaccine specific and supporting learning. You can access the learning you need to support your development using the quick links below.

It is important to note that assessment of your proficiency to vaccinate remains the responsibility of your employer; proficiency assessment documents to support your sign-off as a vaccinator are available using the knowledge and skills quick link

There are also quick link to recording of past webinars and to useful links to additional authoritative information to help support you in your vaccination practice.

The COVID-19 vaccination programme is evolving. As a result, the resources will be updated and will be subject to change. It is a good idea to check into the site regularly and make sure you have reviewed the most up to date version.

Please get in touch with any queries at immunisation-resource@nes.scot.nhs.uk

We will keep you up to date on what is new or information that relates to workforce education for the COVID-19 Vaccination Programme.

Previous updates and information are available by month and year:

Core Knowledge

This section contains learning resources on core aspects of the COVID-19 immunisation programme. Topics include: What is COVID-19?, legal aspects of COVID-19 vaccination including informed consent,  COVID-19 Vaccine development and adverse event reporting

Vaccine Specific Learning

This section contains learning in relation to the COVID-19 vaccines currently available for use. Topics covered include contraindications and precautions, safety and efficacy, administration, dose and schedule and administration of specific COVID-19 vaccines

Vaccinating Children and Young People

The resources contained within this section aim to help support those who are involved with vaccinating children and young people

Pregnancy, Breastfeeding and Women’s Health

The resources contained within this page have been developed to support those involved with vaccinating women who are pregnant or of child bearing age with the COVID-19 vaccine. 

Supporting Learning Resources

This section contains wider learning for vaccinators. Topics include informed consent, supporting those with procedural anxiety, person centred care in relation to vaccination practice, supporting those with specific needs and safety and security within vaccination settings

Webinars

This section contains recordings of webinars held to support the COVID-19 vaccination programme. These webinars are designed to complement the learning afforded within the previous sections and are not designed to be engaged with in isolation.

Knowledge and Skills Checks

This section contains documents for vaccinators to record the learning they have undertaken and to support assessment of proficiency in practice

Version Control Logs

The COVID-19 vaccination programme has been a rapidly evolving programme resulting in the need for regular updates to the learning resources.  These updates are recorded and logged within these version control logs.  Practitioners wishing to ascertain the nature of updates can use these version control logs as well as looking at the “What’s New” section within the page

Useful Links

This section contains links to further information to support vaccinators including links to organisations developing guidance in relation to vaccination programmes and also to the Public Health Scotland vaccine hub which acts a repository to guidance and information for vaccinators

Resources for Trainers and Facilitators

This section holds resources to support trainers and facilitators to deliver facilitated sessions locally.  The learning within the resources mirrors the learning available in all the previous sections.

The TURAS Vaccination Management Tool is a web-based tool that enables front line Health & Social Care staff to capture and create real-time patient vaccination records. The tool facilitates the digitisation and streamlining of real-time data sharing with downstream systems. The tool was developed by NHS Education for Scotland in collaboration with NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, NHS National Services Scotland and Public Health Scotland

• User guide
• Offline vaccination forms
• Guidance for Care Home Vaccinations
• Guidance for GP Practice Vaccinations
• Frequently asked questions