Free flu jab announcement leaves GPs scrambling for vital information

Doctors claim they were given no warning of the Queensland Government’s decision to fund flu vaccines, leaving receptionists scrambling for information and no extra supplies leading to at least one clinic still charging for jabs.

Queensland GPs were caught flat-footed by the Queensland Government’s announcement that flu vaccines will be free, with one Brisbane mum told she’d have to pay as her doctors had not received any state-funded vaccines.

Doctors claim they were given no warning of the decision and receptionists found out from patients who were calling up, desperate for the jab.

“Our receptionists had to google news outlets to find out what was going on.

“The lack of communication left surgeries overwhelmed. State Government supplies have not yet arrived and doctors were not given the vital information that is supposed to come from Queensland Health as to dosages.

“It is not a one size fits all vaccine for all age groups and clinically this must come as a directive from the Government,” Dr Bruce Willett, Queensland chair of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners.

Dr Bruce Willett said doctors were caught off-guard by the announcement. He said State Government supplies had not arrived and there had been no clinical direction regarding doses. Picture: Tara Croser

Queenslanders have inundated doctor surgeries asking for the influenza jab following the Palaszczuk Government’s announcement that a horror few weeks were looming with cases at least doubling and the possible hospitalisation of 500, putting an already overwhelmed health system under severe pressure.

Despite the urgent call for jabs, Dr Willett said that doctors have had to stall many patients due to uncertainty.

A Brisbane mother who booked her eight-year-old son for his flu vaccine on Wednesday received a text message from her family doctor stating that the surgery had not been given any state funded vaccines and if the boy received a flu vaccine it would not be free but cost $25.

Text message a mother received Tuesday when trying to book a flu shot for their child after the QLD State Government said they would be free.

In the middle of the chaos on Tuesday afternoon Queensland Health finally discussed the problems with Dr Willett and reported that doctors could secure their own private supplies of the vaccine and they would be reimbursed.

“They also confirmed the dosages. But it will take a while for the details to filter through to all the doctors so we can finally get this thing underway,” Dr Willett said.

The RACGP Queensland chair said that the problems on the first day of the rollout stemmed from the state’s lack of connection with the people on the ground.

The free jabs will be available to those over the age of six months until June 30, under a six-week race to stop hospitals grinding to a halt from hundreds of influenza A and Covid hospitalisations.

Health Minister Yvette D’Ath on Monday said case numbers were doubling every week, with the state already having the same number of hospital admissions that were seen by July during 2017’s flu outbreak. Last week there were 1848 cases of Influenza A and this week there were 4282.

She said the situation was “escalating very quickly”.