The Western NSW Local Health District will start providing COVID-19 vaccinations to its staff from Monday, 22nd March.
“The Australian Government has developed a schedule that will see the most at-risk groups receive the COVID-19 vaccine as soon as possible,” said Western NSW Local Health District Chief Executive Scott McLachlan.
“Phase 1a includes healthcare workers who work in areas such as emergency departments and intensive care units, as well as aged care residents. Phase 1b includes all other healthcare workers.”
There will be fixed clinics in Orange and Dubbo for healthcare workers from Monday, while the Bathurst clinic will open on Tuesday. Two mobile clinics will also be in operation from Monday visiting all the smaller health facilities over the coming weeks that include facilities in the Parkes Shire. Eligible Lachlan Health Service staff will be contacted directly with information on how to make an appointment when the service comes to their site.
“The vaccination requires two injections at least 12 weeks apart, so staff will be booked in for both their appointments for the Ox-ford/AstraZeneca vaccine. “The Oxford/AstraZeneca offers advantages for our district given the challenges of distance,” said Scott.
The general public will be vaccinated according to the Australian Government’s schedule. “I would encourage people to use the online eligibility checker to see when and how they can access vaccination.
“This is a really exciting development. Our staff, and our communities have been incredible in taking action to minimise the spread of COVID-19, and we all want the vaccination program to be a success.”