It has been more than 3 months for the Vaccine Rollout effectively. The most awaited and most important weapon against the deadly coronavirus arrived in March this year. After devastating the complete world, Australia reduced the impact of COVID-19 with strict lockdown and quarantine periods. Then, the announcement of the COVID-19 vaccine Rollout boosted the fight against this virus. As of now, there is no community transmission in Australia which relieves the tension of the second wave which has affected many countries. Amidst such good aspects of this fight, there are some weak areas which have started to affect.
But, after 3 months the effective immunization of people has not been performed. The government’s target was to administer at least 10 million doses of Vaccine Rollout by the end of May but the real number stands at 3.2 Million only. Even the Chief Health Officer of Victoria has raised concerns regarding the slow pace of vaccination.
Key Reasons for Low Vaccination Speed
At the beginning of the pandemic, the virus started to destroy the lives of people in every corner of the world. With WHO coming with a different set of rules and regulations each time, there have been no certain and specific guidelines about the COVID-19 pandemic. Almost every next symptom has been related to Coronavirus. Such messages have spread ambiguity and confusion more than the clarity about the virus. People have pretty little awareness about the guidelines, treatment, and vaccination.
After the production of Vaccine Rollout, there has been a spread of misinformation, false claims, and rumors about Rollout’s side effects. The most common reason behind low vaccination speed is the hesitancy of people in administering the vaccine which has been related to low awareness. Let’s go through such facts clearly once.
1. No Sense of Urgency for the Vaccine
With the messages spreading everywhere like – Australia has beaten the pandemic, people are kicking away the concerns regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. It has been more than 9 months since cases have not risen in any area. This gives people the confidence to ignore the guidelines along with vaccination opportunities. Low infection and positivity rates of coronavirus have been constant over the period of time.
2. Delay in Vaccination Process due to AstraZeneca
AstraZeneca is the country’s primary vaccine. Rollout works in support of this vaccine to immunize the human against this virus. Most of the vaccines around the world had some unwanted consequences in the minority of cases which were just <<1% of total vaccination doses administered. With AstraZeneca, cases of blood clotting have risen in between which alarmed many countries. According to the survey conducted by Australian National University (ANU), more than 80% of people have heard the news of rare blood clots due to vaccines. Consequently, the decision has been made to get the Pfizer shot for people under the age of 50.
3. Lack of Awareness About Vaccines
Better information can lead to better decision-making and better outcomes. Australian authorities have agreed that advertising related to vaccines has been a weakness in reaching more and more people. In a survey conducted by the Sydney Morning Herald (SMH), there were around 30% or more people lacking complete information about the vaccine. Though many populations of Australia lives in the outskirts of the cities and the spread of information has not been at a standard level.
How is the Government Coping with Slow Vaccination?
Vice president of Australian Medical Association (AMA) – Chris Moy has strictly warned Australians to get vaccinated quickly. Quoting to the situation outside the Australian continent, where the virus has hit again in the form of second-wave in many countries, Chris has highlighted the importance of vaccines.
There has been a steady rise in many countries due to multiple strains of COVID-19 across the globe. Australia has shut its border until mid-2022 which ensures safety from this. But to get the 26 million people vaccinated until then is an astounding challenge.
The government of Australia has started working to improve the communication process that includes advertising methods and channels. With enhanced focus on reaching out to more and more people, the government also wants to focus on increasing the daily number of doses administered. There are just 12 months remaining until the opening of borders which is also important. Covid has pushed every country a few years back if you consider the economic growth of the nation.
PM Scott Morrison has talked about the financial consequences of closing the borders so long and therefore, borders have to get opened next year. Ordering the healthcare authorities to ramp up the vaccination process and ensure that more than 80% of the population is vaccinated before next year in June.
What Should Every Australian Do in Order to Stay Safe and Healthy?
The important part to note here is the vaccine is the thing that the whole world was chasing when COVID-19 hit everyone hard. At that moment, the only concern was to get a vaccine as soon as possible. Looking at the past, there are hundreds of vaccines in the market which every human takes, and neither of them has 100% efficacy. But, it does ensure that the impact of COVID-19 gets dampened with the vaccine. It is 100% sure that anyone can fight against coronavirus with immunity boosted by this vaccine.
Along with showing urgency to get vaccinated, having good health practices is important. Never miss your medications as you can buy them from Online Pharmacy also. Sticking to the guidelines and rules by the government is another step that helps the nation fight and wins. There are some pharmacies that are doing a great job during these tough times and helping people receive medication with no effort.
Aus_Dispensary is one such trusted online pharmacy that has been delivering necessary medicines even in the last year. Used by thousands of Australians during the lockdown and quarantine period, AMS Pharmacy has become the leading online drug supplier in Australia.