Madeleine Taplin
Over the past weekend, Sydney has seen COVID-19 cases of the Delta variant soar to increasingly high numbers. This latest outbreak has placed significant strain on health care professionals who are attempting to battle a virus that has the upper hand. Whilst community case numbers have increased, placing Sydney into further turmoil, this outbreak has been able to prove to the wider population the importance of receiving one of the vaccines, as well as showcasing the high effectiveness and prevention rates against this new variant.
Currently, only 12.9% of the Australian population is fully vaccinated, with NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian stating that in order to control this outbreak, vaccination numbers need to increase. Thankfully, NSW is finally in a position to allow for this roll-out to happen efficiently, with the Federal Government vowing to supply extra doses of both Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines. However, amidst significant supply constraints with the Pfizer vaccine, ‘ATAGI’ (Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation) issued a statement on Saturday stating, “all adults in the Greater Sydney Area should strongly consider getting vaccinated with any available vaccine,” – including the AstraZeneca, stating that the benefits from receiving this vaccine are significantly greater than the risk of the rare side effects for all age groups. So, what are the key points you need to know about the vaccine and its rollout?