Covid Scotland: Linda Bauld urges pregnant people or those trying for a baby to take vaccine

Professor of public health Linda Bauld has urged pregnant people or those trying for a baby to take up the vaccine to protect them and their children from the coronavirus.

Prof Bauld said that while there is no reason why people can’t have the vaccine in pregnancy, it is “perfectly legitimate to have questions” – as people have had since the very beginning of the vaccination programme.

She added though that the outcomes of Covid-19 in relation to pregnancy can be “very serious” which is why it is so important for people in those positions to accept their jags.

Speaking on Good Morning Scotland and addressing the concerns of those considering postponing their vaccinations, Prof Bauld said: “Pregnant women or people trying to get pregnant should take up the vaccine.

“If they need good information I always point to the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.

"They've got some fantastic resources on the webpage, go and have a look at that or speak to your clinician, get the information you need.

“But for women planning a pregnancy or women who are pregnant, we really do need them to take up their vaccines.”

Covid Scotland: Linda Bauld urges pregnant people or those trying for a baby to take vaccine

Prof Bauld went on to say that countries are now learning to live with the virus and the World Health Organisation (WHO) is beginning to look at a longer timeline of coping with it, forecasting that the current wave will ease in the “next month or two”.

“We just don't know what's coming down the track,” she said.

"We probably will have another variant in the future, but we can change our vaccines, we need to start having a conversation in Scotland about how we go through this adaptive period.

"[How to] keep things open and live alongside it, but continue to maintain both protective behaviours and also protection for the vital services that we're going to need to get through the rest of this.”

She added that currently there are no plans to roll out a second booster jag – a forth vaccine – as the latest advice from the JCVI states protection from the third jag is still strong.

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