Getting Aussies vaccinated should be a top priority, and it’s time for the Premier to lead by example

As many Australians as possible must be protected from Covid-19, and for that to happen our leaders must work to restore public confidence in the available vaccines. That should have been the Premier’s number one priority this week, writes The Editor.

One of the most important roles for everyone in any leadership position at the moment must be to restore confidence in the Covid-19 vaccine.

One-third of Australians now say they are apprehensive about getting the jab following the extremely rare cases of blood clots from the AstraZeneca jab.

But if life is to return to normal any time soon we must ensure that as many Australians as possible are protected from the virus that has shut down the world for the past year.

And so our leaders must lead the way.

Yet despite pleas from the state’s top doctors to lead by example and get the vaccine on Monday when, as someone in her 50s, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk became eligible, she chose instead to get a flu jab.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk gets her flu vaccine from clinical nurse immuniser Kym Bidgood during a press conference in Brisbane. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Tertius Pickard

Now, there was a reasonable medical explanation; that it is vital to be protected every year from the flu, and Ms Palaszczuk vowed to get the Covid vaccine in a fortnight – which is the recommended period between the two jabs.

But with so many Queenslanders now expressing concerns about the vaccine, increasing public confidence in this vaccine ought to have been the Premier’s number one priority this week.

As she said herself in March: “It is very important if we want to see more strength in our economy nationally we need to make sure people are taking up the vaccine.”

As the highest officeholder in the state Premier Palaszczuk has a duty to not only lead by example, but to protect herself at the earliest opportunity from an illness which would prevent her from doing the job the Queensland people elected her to do.

Ms Palaszczuk is of course right to inoculate herself against the flu as well, but why not get that jab in two weeks’ time – or two weeks ago?

While we do know that there are slight risks to the AstraZeneca vaccine, the bulk of those risks are limited to people under the age of 50.

And even then, experts say the risk of clotting from the AstraZeneca vaccine is the same as or lower than for the commonly-prescribed contraceptive pill.

In fact, post-vaccine blood clotting deaths are so uncommon that you’ve got more chance of being struck by lightning – as Australian Medical Association Queensland president Chris Perry has pointed out.

Queensland Chief Health Officer Dr Jeannette Young gets her flu vaccine from clinical nurse immuniser Kym Bidgood during a press conference in Brisbane. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Tertius Pickard

To chief health officer Jeannette Young’s credit, she has urged all Queenslanders to register for the vaccine so that they can receive it as soon as it is their time – but it’s not hard to wonder why people are hesitant to become vaccinated if our leaders are delaying getting the jab.

In general, the lack of energy demonstrated by the Queensland Government for a speedy and successful vaccine rollout is stunning and quite frankly nonsensical.

They have dragged their feet on a mass vaccination hub – and we report today that Queensland is now equal dead last for the number of jabs given out each week.

The state government is also relying on their federal counterparts to do the heavy lifting for a public awareness campaign – with the Commonwealth having earmarked $20 million while the Palaszczuk administration keeps delaying its spend.

Nothing is more important than to ensure as many of us are vaccinated against Covid as possible.

It must be the priority.