Warwick GP’s desperate call to arms against Covid as virus threatens to reach Southern Downs

‘It’s just a matter of time’: Leading doctors say the state’s escalating Covid crisis means Warwick cases are almost inevitable, but vaccination rates are still far too low to combat an outbreak.

VACCINE CALLOUT: Condamine Medical Centre co-owner Doctor Lynton Hudson is urging residents to get the Covid vaccine and protect themselves against an impending virus outbreak. Picture: Michael Cormack / Warwick Daily News

Warwick medical experts are desperately urging residents to get vaccinated and arm themselves against Covid amid fears “it’s just a matter of time” before the virus reaches the region.

The Darling Downs and Maranoa region is currently ranked 12th in the state for vaccinations, with 36.9 per cent of people receiving at least one dose of the jab.

The vaccination rate was the second-highest for a rural area in Queensland, with Warwick Hospital recording 593 doses administered and another 275 at Stanthorpe Hospital.

However with a rapidly escalating outbreak of the virus across southeast Queensland and ongoing vaccine supply concerns, Warwick’s leading doctors say the numbers may not be enough.

Condamine Medical Centre co-owner Doctor Lynton Hudson said with nearby council areas such as Lockyer Valley and Scenic Rim now in lockdown, the Warwick community could no longer rely on distance to safeguard against the virus.

“We’ve been protected up to now, but I just don’t know that it’s going to keep going with what’s happening around us,” Dr Hudson said.

“The virus is devastating, and it’s very different to where we were at two months ago when there was none in Australia.

“Too many people move in and out of the town, we’re close to Brisbane (and) people go up and down over the range a lot, that’s just how we are as a community ... so it’s just a matter of time, I would have thought.”

With concerns around blood clots caused by the AstraZeneca vaccine putting off many of those eligible for the jab, Dr Hudson urged residents to talk to their GP and make an informed decision for themselves.

“We just need people to be immunised. We do have a lot of (AstraZeneca), and we’re just concerned that we’re going to have to start thinking about throwing it out, which I think is a tragedy,” he said.

“The risk of clots is 16 per million, and death rates one or two per million. But if you look at all the numbers from Australia, the chances of dying from Covid are 25,000 per million, so it’s a terrible disease.”

“And also being aware of ‘long Covid’ - they get over it but they get a disability, you can get cardiac problems that can go on even if they’ve got over the virus.

“I know people are aware of the clots, but the clots are treatable and the risk when you weigh it up against the risk of the virus, it’s negligible really.”

Dr Hudson said AstraZeneca wasn’t the only vaccine with associated health risks, as the Pfizer variant had been linked to myocarditis (inflammation of the heart muscle) in some recipients.

Condamine Medical Centre and Carbal Medical Services were both approved for the Pfizer vaccine last month alongside the AstraZeneca, but limited supplies have continued to plague the rollout.

Darling Downs Health announced this week that Pfizer walk-in clinics will be run in Warwick and Stanthorpe this month for all residents aged 16-59 to rapidly boost vaccination rates.

Queensland currently has 132 active Covid cases with 10 recorded in the past 24 hours, as 11 local government areas across the southeast remain under a strict lockdown.

Warwick has recorded only one confirmed Covid case since the pandemic began last year.