Covid vaccine now available for 50s and above
A mass vaccination centre could be opened in Wonthaggi by the end of May.
Victorians aged 50 and over are now able to book in for the Covid vaccine.
Bookings for the vaccine opened at 9am on Monday (May 3) and DHS was overwhelmed by the volume of calls, reporting over 5000 before 9.30pm.
The state government has expanded the number of high-volume vaccinations centres across the state, although there is still no confirmed date for when a mass vaccination centre will open in Bass Coast.
CEO Jan Child told the Advertiser Bass Coast Health (BCH) had been working with the Gippsland Public Health Unit and Bass Coast Shire Council to set up a mass vaccination clinic.
The Town Hall in Wonthaggi has been flagged as the ideal site for the local clinic, and Ms Child said they were hopeful of being up and running by the last week of May.
“It’s still a bit up in the air, as we’re waiting on the roll out from Gippsland Public Health.”
Ms Child said it was not possible to take bookings for the new clinic until a start date was confirmed, but details of a local booking number and process would be released as soon as possible.
The plan is to run the mass vaccination clinic for three days a week initially.
Depending on the response and if it was viable, Ms Child said BCH would then investigate setting up a clinic on Phillip Island.
At the moment, only a small number of local GPs are providing a vaccination service. Some clinics are only administering vaccines to existing patients.
Although more GP clinics are expected to come on board, Ms Child said for many doctors, it simply wasn’t possible to provide the vaccination service.
“The logistics are tricky, so you need to have the right facility,” Ms Child said.
“You need to be able to observe people for 15 minutes after the vaccination, so many GP clinics don’t have the room. Everyone is keen for the mass vaccination clinics to pick up the excess.”
Statewide clinics
Across Victoria, 20 mass vaccination sites have been established, including at regional locations in Bendigo, Geelong, Ballarat, Traralgon, Shepparton and Albury Wodonga.
The closest centres to Bass Coast include Box Hill, Ringwood, Frankston, Berwick, Monash Medical Centre and Dandenong.
Phone bookings are strongly encouraged at all sites, with some sites not taking any walk-ins.
To visit one of the existing clinics outside Bass Coast, you can call the vaccination booking service on 1800 675 398 (and select option 3, option 2, option 2) and discuss the centre that’s right for you, based on availability, age and vaccine type.
A full list of opening hours and wait times at Victoria's high-volume vaccination centres is available at www.coronavirus.vic.gov.au/high-volume-vaccinations-centres.
A number of the centres will offer the Pfizer vaccine strictly for those eligible to receive it. The Pfizer vaccine is supply limited and prioritised for eligible people under the age of 50 in phase 1a and 1b of the Commonwealth’s program, in line with advice from ATAGI.
More information about locations, vaccine and walk-in access is also available at coronavirus.vic.gov.au/vaccine. For more information about the Commonwealth’s vaccination program, visit health.gov.au.
