Vaccine Rollout in Australia - personal accounts.

[Flying mermaid]

I had AZ, which was the only one on offer at the Claremont centre, and they indicate to wait 15 mins, but did not appear to be trying to enforce it. In any event, how can they?

They had a couple of staff at the exit, I guess to try to ensure some compliance with the 15 minutes. But they would not have been easily able to see who had gone and sat down for 1 minute or 15 minutes, given that people exited the vaccination area and sat at random in the large combined dose 2 booking area/post-jab waiting area.

The way it was done today is they took you into a vaccination area with a lovely comfy chair to sit in. There were 8 chairs in separate screened areas - I could only see the person opposite me which in this case was Mr FM. After the jab they set a timer and you sat in the same chair. Once the timer went off they told you, you could go and showed you the way out which led to a person who checked you off. Theoretically I suppose you could have got up after the jab and insisted on going, but I didn’t mind waiting.

 

[Flying mermaid]

Is it? I don't know, millions and millions of people jabbed in the UK with AZ seem to indicate otherwise.

Interesting they've gone the approach of doing it for AZ too, the UK (which I do think has a pretty good idea of how it all goes..........) primarily jabs AZ, doesn't require; but does for Pfizer.

I have a friend who has had an anaphylactic reaction in the past. They wouldn’t give her AZ but said she had to have Pfizer. Perhaps Aus just has more room for people to hang around after their jabs? Dr FM said in London that was one of the limiting factors as to how many people they could do at a time, because of the space needed to monitor people afterwards.

 

[Flashback]

I have a friend who has had an anaphylactic reaction in the past. They wouldn’t give her AZ but said she had to have Pfizer. Perhaps Aus just has more room for people to hang around after their jabs? Dr FM said in London that was one of the limiting factors as to how many people they could do at a time, because of the space needed to monitor people afterwards.

Indeed! When I had mine (Pfizer) every single bit of corridor space available in the building had socially distance spaced chairs setup for people to do their 15 minute wait before leaving. I think there were 8 rooms doing the actual jabs where I went (was not a mass vaccination centre, those ones only do AZ).

 

[blackcat20]

I had to wait 15 minutes and was checked out on the computer when I left. Lollipop provided on the way out the door.

 

[Flying mermaid]

No particular reaction - very minor sore arm for me. Mr FM about the same, except he is feeling quite tired and has gone off for a nana nap ( but he likes to do that quite often anyway, since we started looking after Bub).

 

[serfty]

Had a flu shot this week, so need to wait two weeks - Now booked for the week after next at Jeff's Shed ...

 

[nancypants]

1A/B (long story). Had my first dose (Pfizer) 27/4. Happy for me to take photos. An admin teamed up with a vaccinator, probably about 8 in total for the room. My appointment was 11am but I was there about 1030 and called in maybe 1040? Sticker with 15 minutes waiting time end written on it stuck on me, and a very chatty and irritating man in the waiting area attempting to bore us all to death

interestingly the second dose was booked automatically for 21 days time- I got a text, but am away from town for 29 days so have rescheduled. Will get my flu vaccine on day 15 post which will also be 15 days before the next dose

 

[k_sheep]

FINALLY got mine done on Thursday. In and out quickly (including enforced 15 min wait), chupa chup in hand!

Very mildly sore arm next day, headache and neck ache the day after but that could be for other reasons. Auto booked for 2nd dose in 3 weeks.

 

[DC3]

... irritating man in the waiting area attempting to bore us all to death ...

Painful. Unfortunately those types don’t pick up too well on body language. It won’t matter what you do, or say, they don’t get it. Love a captive audience.

 

[Cappuccino99]

Had mine (AZ) on Saturday. Very well organised at my GP surgery in Melbourne (also open to non-surgery patients). Sore arm and general achiness for 24 hours. All good now. Only complaint was no lolly or 'I've had my vaccine' sticker

 

[blackcat20]

My mum turned up for her AZ jab today only to be denied due to penicillin allergy. I have the same allergy it had no issue being given the Pfizer jab. Not sure what her option is now.

 

[Flying mermaid]

My mum turned up for her AZ jab today only to be denied due to penicillin allergy. I have the same allergy it had no issue being given the Pfizer jab. Not sure what her option is now.

Surely they will then let her have Pfizer? I have a friend in her 70s who had had an anaphylactic reaction to something before, (as I have mentioned before), so she wasn’t allowed AZ, but they put her in the queue for Pfizer which she has now had. I would be finding out how she gets Pfizer in Vic.

 

[blackcat20]

Surely they will then let her have Pfizer? I have a friend in her 70s who had had an anaphylactic reaction to something before, (as I have mentioned before), so she wasn’t allowed AZ, but they put her in the queue for Pfizer which she has now had. I would be finding out how she gets Pfizer in Vic.

I hope so, but they havent been able to give her any info yet.

 

[Flying mermaid]

I hope so, but they havent been able to give her any info yet.

Was she at a Vic run clinic or GP or Respiratory? I find here the info has been hard to find - you almost have to dig around and find it for yourself.

 

[drron]

My mum turned up for her AZ jab today only to be denied due to penicillin allergy. I have the same allergy it had no issue being given the Pfizer jab. Not sure what her option is now.

There is no official advice to avoid vaccination if a person has penicillin allergy.
There is also no evidence that the AZ vaccine is more likely to cause anaphylaxis than the Pfizer vaccine.
And those who are immunocompromised the official advice is to get vaccinated with no preference of one vaccine over the other.

 

[JohnM]

There is no official advice to avoid vaccination if a person has penicillin allergy.
There is also no evidence that the AZ vaccine is more likely to cause anaphylaxis than the Pfizer vaccine.
And those who are immunocompromised the official advice is to get vaccinated with no preference of one vaccine over the other.

Gosh, don't uncatastrophise - it doesn't fit the zeitgeist...

 

[Matt_01]

And those who are immunocompromised the official advice is to get vaccinated with no preference of one vaccine over the other.

Gosh, don't uncatastrophise - it doesn't fit the zeitgeist...

You chaps are confusing me, to many big and complicated words What are you really trying to say, the AU government both the Federal and States need to get 'their cough in one sock' and come up with a plan that is less words, more action and get on with the job at hand

 

[blackcat20]

Was she at a Vic run clinic or GP or Respiratory? I find here the info has been hard to find - you almost have to dig around and find it for yourself.

I think a GP but I'll check today.

 

[Flying mermaid]

I think a GP but I'll check today.

Well hopefully someone will be advising her what to do, but in Canberra the procedure would be to get a letter from the GP, saying she can’t have AZ due to the allergy and then get an appointment at a state run clinic which has Pfizer.

 

[Flying mermaid]

There is no official advice to avoid vaccination if a person has penicillin allergy.
There is also no evidence that the AZ vaccine is more likely to cause anaphylaxis than the Pfizer vaccine.
And those who are immunocompromised the official advice is to get vaccinated with no preference of one vaccine over the other.

That may well be, but that’s not what happened here. My friend had an appointment with the Garran surge centre to get AZ, when asking her the normal questions before vaccination she said she had had an anaphylactic reaction before, the nurse said she couldn’t give her AZ and she would need to come back when they were able to give her Pfizer.

Edit this was in late March, so possibly because of this investigation at the time

AstraZeneca ChAdOx1-S COVID-19 vaccine: no evidence of increased risk of anaphylaxis

Update - Expert review finds no evidence of increased risk of anaphylaxis

www.tga.gov.au

And now that the investigation has found no evidence she would have been allowed?