'This has perhaps been the first year where my job has made me cry because that was a preventable situation.'
Jessica has always been anxious about the thought of getting a Covid vaccine while pregnant.
Despite being surrounded by health officials in her admin role for the NHS, the 28-year-old couldn't understand why there had been the "sudden shift" in official advice during the first months of the vaccine rollout.Ellen, who is expecting her second child, agreed: "I was worried at the beginning, but after I had Covid in January, I would rather get the protection.
Vaccination Lead for Bradford District and Craven Clinical Commissioning Group, Rukeya Miah, said: "Women want a bit more reassurance about what the side effects were and what the latest data is saying. Health officials are also keen to stress the benefits, such as babies are likely to be born with protective antibodies if their mothers have the vaccine.During the first months of the vaccine rollout, only pregnant health or care workers or those in at-risk groups were advised by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation to "consider" the jab due to a "lack of evidence".
Professor Knight, the maternal lead for pregnancy monitoring group MBRRACE-UK, said changing initial advice wasn't helpful, but stresses the JCVI had little choice because pregnant women were not included in Covid vaccine trials. A JCVI spokesperson said the committee's advice for pregnant women has "evolved over the course of the vaccine programme as evidence has accumulated" and would encourage any pregnant women who have not yet taken up the vaccine to come forward to do so.