The COVID-19 vaccine was postponed to residents at several regional age care facilities across New South Wales, despite being expected to be among the first participants in a national vaccine rollout .
Key points:
- Distribution of COVID-19 vaccine has been delayed in several age care centers in Wagga Wagga, Wollongong and the Central Coast
- Residents in regional and remote care facilities were entitled to the vaccine this week as part of the national rollout
- Vaccination has been postponed to accommodate vaccine delivery windows, licensing arrangements and cold chain management.
Marie McNamee, 88, is saddened that the vaccines have been distributed to regional areas.
“It looks like a lie,” Ms McNamee said.
Her aged care facility, Peninsula Village, at Umina Beach on the Central Coast of New South Wales, was one of 240 nationwide expected to receive the vaccine in the first week of the national rollout.
Chief executive Shane Neaves said the rollout had been scheduled several times and vaccine administrators, under the Health Care Australia contract, now wanted to arrive between Friday and Sunday.
“Saturday? We need to add extra staff at an extra cost and usually … Saturday and Sunday are family days,” Mr Neaves said.
“I politely said,‘ I think you’re better off coming Monday to Friday because there are more staff here ’.
It is not clear how many regional facilities across the country have delayed the release of the vaccine, but the ABC has confirmed that this is true across several centers in Wagga Wagga and Wollongong.
Mr Neaves says he still does not know when the vaccine administrators will arrive, much to the dismay of the 260 residents waiting to receive the injection.
“They all want it, they all want to do the right thing, but then it becomes an accident and it affects their lives.”
Wagga Wagga facility disappointment with delay
It is a disappointment shared by the operating manager of the Forrest Center in Wagga Wagga, Tania Tellus, who runs two age care facilities in the regional center.
She said they received 24 hours notice that the vaccines would be reorganized.
“It has been a disappointment for residents,” she said.
“It’s been a big problem in terms of listing and reorganizing people for different days, but I think overall we need to focus on the healthcare of the residents . “
Ms Tellus said she understood the procurement challenges facing the project in getting the vaccine to rural areas.
In a statement to the ABC, the Department of Health said last-minute changes were “the adoption of vaccine delivery windows, consent arrangements at the residential age care facility and cold chain management” – the system for transport and store the vaccines within the safe temperature.
The statement went on to say that the department was continually reviewing processes to ensure that effective and safe practices were being adhered to.
Vaccine resection has a flow effect
Ms McNamee hopes the pre-release of the vaccine does not need to be rescheduled too many times.
She said the changes affected residents’ medical appointments, which were difficult to reschedule.
“I know an expert [medical] occupations; we can’t get them every five minutes if we have to turn it off. “
The Australian Minister for Healthcare was contacted for comment.