Qld vaccination blitz due to confluence of factors

Health Minister Yvette D’Ath has revealed thousands of Covid-19 vaccines have already been thrown out due to supply-chain mistakes and that many vaccines had looming expiration dates.

Looming expiration dates and the Victorian outbreak have driven this weekend’s massive inoculation drive targeting 15,000 people, as Queensland ramps up its ability to put jabs in arms.

Health Minister Yvette D’Ath said she didn’t want to waste a single drop of “liquid gold” even as she revealed some batches had to be thrown away after supply-chain mistakes had meant deliveries were made to wrong addresses, or allowed to thaw.

As 18 vaccination hubs operate this weekend, Ms D’Ath said the Victorian outbreak, low coverage of aged care workers and Pfizer vaccines due to expire at the end of July, which are still being delivered now, all formed the impetus for this weekend’s mega drive.

She also foreshadowed more vaccination campaigns in the regions, where uptake had been lower.

People await vaccination at Rocklea Showgrounds in Brisbane’s south. Picture: Annette Dew

Queensland’s wastage figure was 0.03 per cent, but Ms D’Ath said more than 3000 vaccines had to be thrown away recently when they spoiled in transit, which was a Commonwealth responsibility.

“I don’t know if they’ve all been that big but we’ve certainly had stock lost before in transit – lost as in it hasn’t been viable when it’s been provided to us,” she told The Sunday Mail.

“It’s either been delivered at the wrong address, or delivered out of the hours that it was supposed to and left so it wasn’t refrigerated straight away.

“They’ll say they’re delivering it this day and then turn up the night before when it’s not able to be put away straight away.”

“So some of the new arrival still have a short expiry date – no criticism for that – but we are getting stock that has a shorter lifespan than what we had earlier in the year, which means we have to use it quickly,” she said.

She said registrations across southeast Queensland had been strong, but an analysis of 40 to 49-year-olds booking showed there was weaker demand in the regions.

“I want to look more into that,” she said.

“I do think there’s some more messaging that needs to be done in the community and to find out whether it’s being either concerned or anxious about the vaccinations that they’re getting.

“Or it can be, and I’ve seen this myself, people in north Queensland don’t feel they’re at risk as much … so I would say there’s a lot more complacency in the north.”

With the state delivering 46,000 jabs over five days this week, authorities plan to double that amount in just three weeks when people’s second jabs are due.

Responding to criticism Queensland’s rollout has been one of the slowest across the country, Ms D’Ath said Queensland was “very different to most other states” but that it was ramping up very quickly now.

“I have all confidence that we will start moving through the Pfizer and the stock we have on hand very, very quickly,” she said.

Pfizer, which needs to be specially stored at very low temperatures, is now being stored at 16 different “hubs” across the Hospital and Health Service districts that are then sending out to more than 100 satellite centres where vaccines are being given.