The Royal Flying Doctor Service visited the Jervis Bay Territory and administered 385 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to help protect the Aboriginal community against the virus.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The Wreck Bay Aboriginal Community Council (WBACC) collaborated with the Jervis Bay Territory (JBT) to lead the charge in raising vaccine awareness in the community.
Arriving in Wreck Bay on Sunday, August 29, staff from the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) administered doses of Pfizer, and will return in a few weeks time to provide the community with their second dose.
The rollout began on Monday, August 30, with HR Manager for the WBACC George Brown noting the rollout went "extremely well".
"In collaboration with the Jervis Bay Territory, we worked with the Royal Flying Doctor Service over the last couple of weeks to prepare our community," said Mr Brown.
"We engaged with community members to get that information out regarding the benefits associated with the vaccination. And it went successfully."
Read more:
Mr Brown said some community members who were initially reluctant about the vaccination ended up coming forward to get the jab.
"Some community members were a little reluctant at first. So in the lead up, we did a lot of door knocks around community to get that information out," said Mr Brown.
"A lot were hesitant to participate but we provided enough information for them to make an informed decision for themselves.
"We pushed the notion of keeping our mob safe and older vulnerable members of our community safe.
"When it came down to those community members that were a bit hesitant, it was amazing to see them show up."
Mr Brown reiterated that keeping mob on the South Coast safe was paramount in the rollout.
"Multiple Aboriginal communities have been struggling and suffering from not having enough vaccines, so it was really important that we were proactive on the South Coast, because cases started getting closer and closer," said Mr Brown.
"We wanted our community to be prepared because we do have community members, some young and also Elders, with chronic health issues."
The RFDS South Eastern Health Quality and Safety Officer Kellyann Johnson said the response from the Jervis Bay Territory community was "overwhelmingly positive".
"The response we have had from the community has been overwhelmingly positive, with 385 people, including Elders, young people and entire families turning up to roll up their sleeves to get vaccinated," she said.
"The Wreck Bay Aboriginal Community Council were leaders in this and they ran the clinic perfectly. They welcomed us and had everything under control."
Read more:
The Pfizer doses were administered to community members aged 12 and above. The oldest person that came forward for a vaccination was 88-years-old.
The RFDS had a doctor on site to provide targeted health advice to those with health concerns, including parents.
Wreck Bay Aboriginal Community Council Staff, Booderee National Park Staff, JBT Administration staff, Department of Defence personnel and a number of contractors, all of who work across the JBT with the community also got the jab.
A spokesperson from the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications thanked the community for their response.
"The Australian Government would like to thank the Royal Flying Doctor's Service for their exemplary service in rolling out vaccines to vulnerable communities such as the JBT across Australia, and the Wreck Bay Aboriginal Community Council for their hard work and dedication to supporting their community to protect itself from COVID-19," the spokesperson said.
The RFDS have visited various locations across Australia to undertake vaccination clinics in Aboriginal communities, including in Wilcannia, Broken Hill, Narrabri, Weewar, Armitree, Walgett and Bourke.
We depend on subscription revenue to support our journalism. If you are able, please subscribe here. If you are already a subscriber, thank you for your support.