Bristol residents can earn £235 as part of coronavirus vaccine trial

Bristol residents can earn £235 for taking part in a Coronavirus vaccine trial that starts tomorrow (23 April).

People living in postcodes BS1-6 and BS8 are eligible to participate in a 6 month long trial testing a new vaccine for the virus that has swept the world.

Other eligibility criteria including being healthy, aged 18-55, not pregnant or breastfeeding, not having been diagnosed with COVID-19, and not participating in any other drug trials.

The trial is being run by researchers from the University of Bristol, University Hospitals Bristol, and Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW) in partnership with the University of Oxford.

A total of 1,112 volunteers are being recruited in order to “assess whether healthy people can be protected from COVID-19”, while also monitoring “safety aspects”.

The vaccine being tested is a “weakened version of a common cold virus from chimpanzees” that has been “genetically modified”. They are “hoping to make the body recognise and develop an immune response” to stop any infection.

561 volunteers will be given the new vaccine, while 551 volunteers will be given a control vaccine to be able to effectively measure effectiveness.

The website says: “During the first 24-48 hours after vaccination you may experience flu-like symptoms such as muscle aches, joint aches, feverishness, chills, headache, nausea, tiredness and/or feeling generally unwell.

“These symptoms should usually resolve within a few days.”

The only other countries currently testing a vaccine for the Coronavirus are the USA and China.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock awarded £20 million to the Oxford University to fund this trial, along with £22.5 million to an Imperial College trial, saying he was “throwing everything” at being the first country to discover a vaccine.

If you are interested in participating, click here to go to the website.