Covid-19: around 27,000 lives saved in Scotland thanks to vaccination

Using the weekly numbers of observed deaths and vaccination coverage, the study published Friday in Eurosurveillance estimates that nearly half a million lives were saved in Europe from December 2020 to November 2021 – for a total of 469,186.

In Scotland it is estimated that 86% of deaths were prevented and in Europe it is 51%.

This estimate does not include lives saved by vaccinating people under the age of 60 or lives saved by the indirect effect of vaccination due to reduced transmission.

Discussing the study, co-author Dr Jim McMenamin, Head of Infection Health Protection Services at Public Health Scotland, said: The program is estimated to have saved over 27,000 lives in Scotland.

“Our thanks to everyone who has come forward to be vaccinated to date. I am also grateful to colleagues across the country who have worked tirelessly to support the rapid deployment of COVID-19 vaccines. ”

The authors estimated the number of deaths among adults aged 60 and over in the 33 countries of the European Region that would have occurred without any vaccine using the actual number of deaths reported each week.

They then calculated the number of lives saved thanks to the COVID-19 vaccination as the difference between those estimates and the number of deaths reported from December 2020 to November 2021 for people aged 60 and over.

The absorption of the full series of doses of COVID-19 vaccines in people aged 60 and over now ranges from 20% to 100% in the 33 countries studied.

The study estimated that the greatest number of lives saved were in countries where the rollout of COVID-19 vaccination was early and adoption in the target group was also high.

Adding his own thoughts, Dr Nicholas Phin, Director of Public Health Sciences at Public Health Scotland, said: ‘We know that the COVID-19 vaccine remains the most effective way to protect us. This latest study shows how the COVID-19 vaccination program has had an impact in Scotland.

“When it is time for you to receive a third dose or a booster dose of the vaccine, please take this opportunity to strengthen your protection against COVID-19 as soon as possible. If you have not yet received a dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, you can protect yourself and others by registering online or finding your nearest vaccination center through the NHS Inform website. ”