The global COVID-19 pandemic has impacted millions of people around the world.
The virus can make people extremely sick and, in some cases, can even be fatal.
The best way to protect yourself, your family and your community is by getting vaccinated.
People who have been vaccinated with two doses against COVID have a greatly reduced
chance of getting sick, being hospitalised or dying from COVID, and also have a reduced
risk of transmitting the virus to others. As more people become protected through
vaccination, in time, we will not need to be as reliant on measures like strict lockdowns and
travel restrictions, which cause significant personal, economic and community disruption.
Three brands of vaccine have been approved for use in Australia
by the Therapeutic Goods Administration.
All three vaccines are effective in protecting against all strains of COVID,
and are very effective in preventing severe illness and death from COVID.
In SA Health clinics, we are currently offering both Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines.
The Pfizer vaccine is available for everyone aged between 16 and 59 years.
The AstraZeneca vaccine is available to anyone over 18 years.
If you are aged 60 and over, you can receive the AstraZeneca vaccine.
For adults 18 to 59 years, either Pfizer or AstraZeneca may be used.
SA Health has increased availability of the AstraZeneca vaccine, so it may be quicker for
you to have the AstraZeneca instead of the Pfizer vaccine. Please don’t delay your first dose.
All vaccines and medications have possible risks and this is also true of the vaccines
that we use to protect against COVID. All the current TGA approved vaccines
provide excellent protection from the virus for the vast majority of people.
As with any vaccine or medicine, there may be rare side effects.
But the most common side effects are mild and can include injection site pain or tenderness, tiredness,
headache, muscle pain, and fever or chills. And this usually lasts between one and two days.
In very rare circumstances, thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome,
also known as TTS, has been reported after a dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine.
TTS involves blood clotting with low platelet count. Although rates of TTS differ for different
age groups, current data indicates that TTS occurs in around 2 out of every 100,000 people
who receive the first dose of AstraZeneca. TTS is far rarer following the second dose,
with data from the UK indicating a rate of 1.5 per million doses.
TTS is a treatable condition, with the vast majority of patients making a full recovery.
The benefits of receiving a COVID vaccination greatly outweigh the risk of this condition.
Further information on this rare condition is available on the SA Health website.
Both the Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines require two doses to provide maximum protection.
The optimum time between Pfizer vaccine doses is 3 and 6 weeks, and between 8 and 12 weeks
for AstraZeneca. In an outbreak setting the AstraZeneca vaccine can be given earlier
at 4 weeks, to ensure as much protection as possible in the event of community transmission.
Both vaccines provide optimum protection approximately two weeks after your second dose.
It’s so important that the two doses are given, to provide
additional protection against the delta variant. If you've had your first dose of AstraZeneca and you
are under the age of 60, it is safe to have your second dose, unless there are
specific medical contraindications or the same vaccine brand is not available in Australia.
Some people may choose to delay vaccination because there may be
relatively low numbers of COVID 19 in South Australia. But this could change at any time,
as evident by the outbreaks in other states, such as New South Wales and if we have high
rates of vaccination in South Australia this will protect our community before the disease spreads.
If we as South Australians wait for an outbreak to get vaccinated,
it may be too late to benefit from the full protection these vaccines provide.
Please discuss any concerns or questions you have with your immunisation provider.
I strongly encourage everyone over 16 years of age to get vaccinated as soon as possible.
If you are under 60, please roll up your sleeve,
book in and get vaccinated with either the Pfizer or AstraZeneca vaccine as soon as possible,
to protect yourself, your loved ones, and our community.