Vaccine Qld: Teenagers leading the way in getting vaccinated

Young teens in Queensland are getting vaccinated faster than anyone else in the state, with nearly one in five showing up for their first jab in less than a fortnight.

Queensland’s young teenagers are getting vaccinated faster than anyone else in the state, with nearly one in every five of them showing up to get their first jab in less than a fortnight.

Analysis of vaccination data revealed children aged 12 to 15 are taking up the Covid-19 jab so quickly it is possible 80 per cent of the group will have had a single dose by November 2 — just a day behind Queenslanders in their 20s.

Experts believe the spread of Covid-19 in schools and the impact the pandemic has had on teen freedoms is what’s driving the cohort to get vaccinated as soon as they can.

Two weeks into being allowed to get the jab, 17.4 per cent of Queenslanders aged 12 to 15 have already had their first dose, a milestone that took the 30-34 age group about two months to accomplish.

Nationally 27 per cent of teens aged 12 to 15 have had their first jab, with youths in New South Wales, Victoria and the two territories leading the way.

Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt signalled the impressive take up of the vaccine by teens could at some point push Australia’s vaccination rate above 80 per cent as a share of the entire population, not just those above 16.

Charlie Blanshard and Emily Worthington, both 14, are among the Queensland teens getting vaccinated early. Picture: Steve Pohlner

As it stands 44.8 per cent of Queenslanders aged above 16 are fully vaccinated, with the state likely to hit 80 per cent on December 7 and 63.8 per cent have had at least one dose.

The State still trails NSW, which has almost 60 per cent of residents over 16 fully vaccinated and 85 per cent with one dose, and Victoria, which is expected to hit its 80 per cent single dose target tomorrow.

Infectious disease expert Paul Griffin said pent up demand and the impact Queensland’s recent Covid-19 clusters have had on schools could be behind the rapid take-up of the jab by young teens.

Since the end of July, when the Indooroopilly Delta outbreak that impacted nearly a dozen schools took off, 109 of Queensland’s Covid-19 infections have been in children and teenagers aged 0 to 19.

“I would think that the recent events of cluster centred around schools would have given (teens) a sufficient perception of risk (of Covid-19),” Dr Griffin said.

“The impact that they’re not able to go to school … has potentially contributed to them being eager to get the vaccine.”

Adolescent epidemiologist Professor Robert Booy said teenagers were “clear thinking” and had identified there was a quick solution to the issues Covid-19 was causing.

“They are thinking ‘I want to get back to school, I want to see my friends, I want to have freedom’ and they understand that vaccination is a quick path to freedom,” he said.

Teens have also had the ease of access on their side, with the number of pharmacies administering the Moderna jab in Queensland set to double this week from 400 to 800 sites.

Chief health officer Dr Jeannette Young has also decreed Queensland is no longer being hampered by Covid-19 vaccine supply issues and now was the time to get the jab.

“We have plenty of supplies, there is no shortage,” she said.

“You can go to a pharmacy and get Moderna. You can go to your GP and get AstraZeneca or Pfizer. You can come to one of our clinics and get Pfizer so there’s lots of choice out there.

“Now’s the time to do it, it’s absolutely critical so we can move towards the end of the year and really start celebrating a bit like we did (on the weekend).”

Siblings Charlie and Lillian Blanshard, who are 14 and 16 years old, said getting vaccinated meant being able to travel overseas again and go on family holidays.

“We’re so excited we can’t wait to get back travelling next year to New York, all my friends from school have had their first dose and we are so excited to be fully vaccinated,” Lillian said.

Leila MacDonald, 13, and her brother Fin, 12, wanted to get the jab to feel safer, but there were also other simpler motivations.

“You only feel it a bit but you’ll be fine because you get a free lollipop, or ten,” Fin said.