Goulburn Health Hub director advocates AstraZeneca vaccine safety

That's the firm view of Goulburn Health Hub director Sophie Ashton, who has received her second shot of the vaccine.

But every second call to the Bradfordville clinic requests the Pfizer vaccine, which is not yet in stock.

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Ms Ashton said although the Hub was approved to receive Pfizer in July, stocks were diverted to Sydney to vaccinate school students. The nearby Bradfordville Family Medical Centre is in the same boat

While the Hub has 800 AstraZeneca vaccines in reserve, and is administering its maximum supply of 400 per week, it has a waiting list of 700 for the Pfizer jab. Ms Ashton said it wasn't clear when these would arrive but when they did, the clinic would likely open after hours and on weekends.

"We made a promise that we would vaccinate anyone who wanted AstraZeneca within two weeks," she told The Post.

"But that is not the problem. I don't think there are enough people putting their hand up for it...There's a lot of misinformation about AstraZeneca, which is a real shame.

"We won't be able to vaccinate everyone with Pfizer but in taking AstraZeneca, people should understand there is only a one in two million chance of death and because there is so much knowledge within the health system, any ill-effects can be quickly addressed."

The Hub is vaccinating 50 people on average daily, across two clinics.

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Recently, calls have been flooding in from people who had pre-booked vaccinations in the ACT but were being denied entry. Ms Ashton said this was "troubling" as a good number due for second jabs were simply stuck.

If they had received Pfizer for their first jab, AstraZeneca wasn't necessarily recommended for the second shot. Goulburn clinics are reporting long waiting lists for Pfizer.

"People really need to to get on board with AstraZeneca and they should feel safe with that," Ms Ashton said.

ACT Health Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith confirmed on Friday that a recently issued standing health order did not apply to COVID vaccinations for people from Goulburn and Crookwell. However talks were underway with the Southern NSW Local Health District on whether these vaccines could be transferred from the ACT to Goulburn and Crookwell in order to minimise cross-border people movement.

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The standing order does, however, mean that people requiring 'urgent or critical care' will be allowed entry, without an exemption. Patients would be contacted by health providers about this.

Ms Ashton believed a vaccination hub in Goulburn, which MP Wendy Tuckerman was pursuing, would help solve the problem and address wait times.

"If it is well located in a visible, central place, I think it will plant the seed for everyone else to get vaccinated," she said.

NSW Health data released this week showed that the 2580 postcode, covering Goulburn, Taralga and Bungonia among others - has a 40-49 per cent vaccination rate for the first dose. Approximately 20 to 29 per cent of eligible residents had received their second dose.

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