Vaccine Services

This page relates to ADULT VACCINATIONS.

Routine Immunisation of Children and Young People are provided by Children’s Teams based in the 4 HSCPs and the Community Vaccination Team – please see:

Children and Young People Vaccinations

Important note

Please note that GPs do not provide routine vaccination services and patients should not be referred to their GPs for these. Clinicians seeing patients should advise them of the following services.

NHS Lothian HSCP Vaccination Service – ADULTS

The Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP) Vaccination Service provides a variety of services for adults in Lothian, including:

Routine Vaccinations: Flu, pneumococcal, RSV and shingles.
COVID-19 Vaccinations.
Missed Childhood Vaccinations: For individuals up to age 25.
Additional Vaccinations: For people with underlying medical conditions.
Pre-Exposure Rabies Vaccination: Specifically for volunteer bat handlers.
Completion Courses: Follow-up doses for vaccinations initially given as treatment post-exposure (e.g. subsequent tetanus doses after the first was administered at a Minor Injuries Service).

Services NOT provided by HSCP Vaccination Teams.

Travel Vaccination: Offered by the Travel Service.
Mpox and Gonorrhea Vaccination Programmes : Offered by the Sexual Health Service.
Rabies Post-Exposure Treatment: Available by rabies pathway.
Occupational Health or Private Vaccination Requests: Offered by private providers. Patients should seek advice from their employer.
Pertussis, flu and RSV during pregnancy: Offered by Maternity.
Hepatitis B for babies of mothers with Hepatitis B: Offered by 0-5 Vaccination Teams.

C.M. & K.McL. 30-6-26

Routine and Condition-Based Vaccinations in Scotland:

Routine vaccinations are defined by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) in the Complete Routine Immunisation Schedule.
Selective Immunisation Programmes are set out in the UKHSA guidance.
Additional vaccines for individuals with underlying medical conditions are also specified within the UKHSA guidance.
COVID-19 Vaccination Programmes are not currently included in the UKHSA schedules; however, they have been delivered on a seasonal basis (Spring and Winter) to eligible groups.
Please consult the Green Book for up-to-date information on vaccination programmes.

For all of the above, NHS Lothian Vaccination Services use information recorded in patient health records to determine eligibility. This is either based on age, clinical coding or treatment that confirms a relevant condition, meaning patients do not require referral for these vaccinations

Specific circumstances where referral for vaccination is required are outlined below (see Non-Routine Vaccination Referrals below).

Routine Invitation Cycle Periods

VACCINE TYPE	STARTING	ENDING
COVID-19	SEPTEMBER	JANUARY
FLU	SEPTEMBER	MARCH
PNEUMOCOCCAL & SHINGLES	JANUARY	MARCH
RSV	JANUARY	MARCH
COVID-19	APRIL	JUNE
PNEUMOCOCCAL & SHINGLES	JULY	SEPTEMBER
RSV	JULY	SEPTEMBER

Arranging Vaccinations

Patient Invitations

If a patient’s date of birth and clinical coding are accurate and up to date, referrals are typically not required. Eligible patients will be identified through national cohort extracts and contacted automatically with an appointment offer to a community clinic.

Vaccination in Alternative Environments

Information about vaccination in alternative environments, such as Care Homes, Prisons and Inpatient Hospital settings is available on the Vaccination in Alternative Environments webpage.

Vaccinations for the housebound

Patients who may require vaccination and are housebound should contact the NHS Lothian Vaccination Enquiries Line. They will be screened to determine eligibility for home-based vaccination support. Enquiries Line: 0300 790 6296.

Missed Childhood Vaccinations

Patients can contact the NHS Lothian Vaccination Enquiries Helpline on 0300 790 6296 to arrange outstanding childhood vaccines, whatever their current age.

Further Information

Further information about Vaccination Services in NHS Lothian is at: nhslothian.scot/vaccinations

Non‑Routine Vaccination Referrals

A Non‑Routine Referral should only be made in the following circumstances. The clinician who is making the decision to refer is responsible for completing and submitting the non-routine vaccine referral form and other clinicians should not ask the GP to do this.

1. Expedited Vaccination

Requests can be made when a vaccine is required sooner than the routine invitation cycle (which is noted at the top of this page), for example:

Prior to starting chemotherapy
Before planned immunosuppression
Before or after a procedure that increases infection risk (e.g. stem cell transplantation, where immunity is lost following the treatment and the patient requires a complete re-immunisation course).

2. When Eligibility Is Not Coded in Digital Systems

National cohort files are produced using clinical coding recorded in patient health records. If a condition, treatment or medication that confers vaccine eligibility has not been recorded digitally, it will not appear in the extracts used to generate cohort lists. In these cases, a manual referral ensures the patient is offered the correct vaccination. Examples of groups that may be missed include:

Recently treated or diagnosed immunosuppressed patients
Patients receiving medication only captured in secondary care where speciality area is not using HEPMA
Children under 16 newly undergoing chemotherapy
Individuals living with HIV not registered with a GP.

3. Two‑Dose Primary (Pneumococcal) Schedule for Severe Immunosuppression

Referrals can be made to advise that a patient with severe immunosuppression requires two doses of PCV20.

4. Completion of Post Exposure Courses

Urgent post-exposure vaccinations (e.g. tetanus, Hepatitis B) are given immediately by the team treating the injured or infected person. These initial doses are part of emergency clinical care and are not facilitated through the Vaccination Service.

However, if additional doses are required to complete the course referrals should be submitted to ensure the remaining doses are scheduled at correct intervals.

GPs will only administer post-exposure completion doses for tetanus when they provide the initial primary (emergency) dose as part of the Minor Injuries Local Enhanced Service (LES) – only some practices undertake this. In all other cases, completion doses should be arranged through the Vaccination Service via a referral by the clinician managing the initial injury or infection.

5. Hepatitis B

Referrals can be made for individuals at high risk of exposure or complications of the disease as set out in The Green Book, Chapter 18 Hepatitis B.

See section 4 (above) regarding the Completion of Post Exposure Courses.

Hepatitis B for babies of mothers with Hepatitis B: Offered by 0-5 Vaccination Teams

Allergy Advice via Dermatology

For patients considered at high risk of anaphylaxis from COVID-19 vaccination, prior to vaccination:

Submit a SCI Gateway referral to Dermatology, marked “advice only” and for the attention of Dr David McKay, clearly noting that the request relates to vaccine allergy advice.

General Enquiries

Members of the public can contact NHS Lothian Vaccination Services via:

Professional Contact Details (for colleagues only)

These inboxes support communication with HSCP vaccination teams and must not be shared publicly: