Shingles vaccines for the over 50s available from our pharmacies

We have received number of enquires about the shingles vaccine in our pharmacies in this post we aim to give you general information. Call into one of our pharmacies for more information.

What is shingles?

Singles is a common, painful skin disease. It is a painful skin rash caused by the reactivation of the chickenpox virus in people who have had chickenpox in the past.

It begins with a burning sensation in the skin, followed by a rash of very painful fluid-filled blisters that can then burst and turn into sores before healing. Often an area on just one side of the body is affected and sometimes the head, face and eye can be affected

It can be very painful and uncomfortable. Some people are left with pain lasting for years after the initial rash has healed and shingles is fatal for around 1 in 1,000 over-70s who develop it.

You don’t “catch” shingles – it comes on when there’s a reawakening of chickenpox virus that’s already in your body. The virus can be reactivated because of advancing age, medication, illness or stress and so on.
Anyone who has had chickenpox can get shingles. It’s estimated that around one in five people who have had chickenpox go on to develop shingles.

Who can be vaccinated on the NHS?

You are eligible for the shingles vaccine if you are aged 70 to 78 years old.
In addition, anyone who was eligible for immunisation in the previous three years of the programme but missed out on their shingles vaccination remains eligible until their 80th birthday. This includes:

• people in their 70s who were born after 1 September 1942
• people aged 79 years

You can have your NHS vaccine done at your doctor’s surgery.

What can I do if I do not meet the criteria for an NHS Shingles vaccine?

We can vaccinate people who are over 50 years of age on a private basis in all of our pharmacies. You need one dose of vaccine and this will cost £150. For a complete list of vaccines services go our vaccine page.