Police encourage Logan and Scenic Rim locals to get Covid-19 vaccines

Police plead with residents to get vaccinated as low jab rates are revealed for two suburbs south of Brisbane - “please step up and help educate about the availability of the vaccine.”

Police are pleading with Logan and Scenic Rim locals to get vaccinated as jab rates reveal these rural suburbs are lagging behind.

Queensland Health statistics this month reveal rural Logan and Scenic Rim suburbs are behind the national and state vaccination rate.

Nationally 50.6% of Australians are fully vaccinated against Covid-19, and in Queensland 50.3% are fully vaccinated.

According to the data in Logan to Beaudesert, 162,890 people are partially vaccinated and the fully-vaccinated population across the region is 102,042.

38.3% of Beaudesert locals are fully vaccinated compared to Jimboomba’s full vaccination rate of just 36.7%.

To address the issue, a pop up clinic for Jimboomba will be open and eligible to all residents, no bookings required, for the first time ever.

It will be open today, Thursday, and Friday this week at the Jimboomba public hall.

Top cop Melissa Adams, Acting Chief Superintendent and District Officer for the Logan Police District and the District Disaster Coordinator for Logan and the Scenic Rim, is wanting rural locals to get vaccinated this week.

Officer Adams said in disasters in the past, Logan and Scenic Rim communities proved they were good at pulling together and supporting response and recovery efforts.

“We are asking people now to support each other in getting vaccinated,” she said.

“We are asking that our residents please step up and please help educate your family, mates, and co-workers about the availability of vaccine.”

Melissa Adams, acting Logan District Chief Superintendent and District Officer, getting her Covid-19 vaccine. Photo: contributed.

“While vaccine uptake has steadily been increasing in the Scenic Rim including Jimboomba we do have concerns about pockets of people yet to access vaccine and in particular some of our vulnerable communities, such as CALD and First Nations people,” Officer Adams said.

“The very thing that makes CALD and First Nations communities so vibrant and special, their social connection, large families groups and constant interaction, is the very thing that makes them vulnerable to the transmission of Covid-19.

“We can’t have just portions of the community vaccinated.

“The unvaccinated groups in our community risk becoming transmission hot spots or belts of transmission that may decimate the health and well being of individuals, families and the community generally.”

Officer Adams said it’s vital everyone in Jimboomba gets vaccinated to minimise infection risk.

“The COVID-19 vaccine protects you from getting seriously ill if you were to get infected with the virus,” she said.

“By having the COVID-19 vaccine you are less likely to transmit the virus to someone you love, if you were to get infected with the virus.

“You are helping to increase the number of Queenslanders who are vaccinated which will help to decrease the spread of COVID-19 in our community.”

Jimboomba officers getting their Covid-19 vaccines. Photo: contributed.

Nearby in rural Logan and the Scenic Rim, there is a hub available three days a week at Beaudesert and another that has been in place for some time taking bookings at Yarrabilba.

The large hubs at Logan Entertainment Centre and Mount Warren Park sports venue are still open, taking walk ins and the delays are very minimal.

“They have great capacity, forget about the big delays on the media in early days, the queues move quickly,” Officer Adams said.

Locals can rock up in person at one of the walk in clinics or visit the Queensland Health website to register.

Alternatively, eligible people can make an appointment via the Vaccine Eligibility Checker to receive their COVID-19 vaccine at an approved General Practice (GP), GP–led respiratory clinic, Aboriginal Controlled Community Health Service or Pharmacy.