The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) is expected to approve the first COVID-19 vaccine, produced by Pfizer/BioNTech, by the end of January and the second, developed by AstraZeneca, in February. Shown to be 95 per cent effective, well-tolerated and with no serious safety concerns, the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine will be a significant and welcome step forward in our fight against COVID-19.
A phased rollout will ensure that those at highest risk of infection receive priority for vaccination, with the delivery of COVID-19 vaccines commencing with frontline healthcare and aged care employees and residents in the initial Phase (1a). Our priority list was developed through our expert clinical reference group when they considered the sequencing of our fit testing program.
If you didn’t see it, watch this week’s Employee Forum, where Professor Rhonda Stuart discussed the vaccination program we are developing for healthcare workers and gave a presentation, including the background and principles that guide our approach and our next steps.
It is important for all of us to make sure we are as informed as possible about vaccination. It’s critical that we carefully source our information from the experts and that we consider it in the context of what’s happening across Australia and the world.
Further information, FAQs and resources are now available on the vaccination page of our COVID-19 website.
This information will be updated regularly based on your questions and as further details about the rollout come to hand.
If you are a trained immuniser, please email anita.lovegrove@monashhealth.org, and you will be contacted when expressions of interest open.