PATIENTS queued along a pavement outside a York GP surgery for up to an hour after more than 1,000 turned up for a flu jab.

The extraordinary scenes developed near the Heworth Green Surgery on Saturday morning as it ran the latest in a series of flu vaccination sessions - this one aimed specifically at the over-65s.

The queueing prompted complaints that elderly patients were being put at risk in the chilly autumn air just as they were seeking to protect their health.

Amy Yates-Brown claimed the queueing was a "disgrace", adding: “The NHS need to provide better health care for patients - half of these will catch the flu before being vaccinated for it.”

Another woman said: “My grandad waited an hour in that queue, at the age of 81, when he’s just been in hospital for two weeks for heart problems.”

She said he had been told he really needed the jab and so had had to go, adding: “It’s a joke.”

Martin Eades, managing partner at the practice, which is part of the Priory Medical Group, said the queueing was a result of an "unprecedented" number of patients turning up in one morning for a jab.

He said the patient numbers were in contrast to some previous sessions this autumn, when they were so low that the sessions were over-staffed.

On this occasion - when one member of staff happened to be off sick - the numbers were so great that the surgery had had to contact other staff members who were on an NHS course and ask them to come to the surgery to help out in giving the vaccinations.

As far as he was aware, everyone who stayed in the queue ended up getting a jab.

He said some patients had been annoyed at the wait, which was up to one hour, and had complained in person and on social media, while others had accepted it.

He apologised for the delays that patients had faced but said he was pleased that 1,000 patients had ended up being protected against flu this winter.

Mr Eades said the vaccination programme had been more complex than normal this autumn, with different jabs for different at-risk groups and staggered delivery of supplies.

He added that while Saturday’s session was meant to have been the surgery’s last of the season, it was possible another one would now be held, and the whole vaccination programme would be reviewed before next year.