Gold Coast vaccination rates on the up post pandemic as health experts ready for COVID vaccine.

Medical boffins are hopeful the city’s improving immunisation rate will hold it in good stead when a vaccine for coronavirus eventually arrives.

• MEDICAL boffins are hopeful the city’s improving immunisation rate will hold it in good steed when a vaccine for coronavirus eventually arrives.

MEDICAL boffins are hopeful the city’s improving immunisation rate will hold it in good stead when a vaccine for coronavirus eventually arrives.

Health experts say they are buoyed that Gold Coasters worked around COVID shut downs and mass conspiracy theories to ensure that at least 93.24 per cent of children under five were vaccinated — up from 92.7 per cent at the same time last year.

However, the Federal Department of Health data  reveals the Gold Coast still remains one of the worst in Australia, behind northern NSW (91.35 per cent) and inner-city Sydney (92.49 per cent).

The Gold Coast Hinterland remains the city’s anti-vax hotspot with only 89.3 per cent of children vaccinated by age five, well below a target of 95 per cent.

It is followed by Surfers Paradise (91.03 per cent) and Coolangatta (91.58 per cent).

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Doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccine, which are being stored at a secure location in the Midlands England, are taken from cold storage to waiting transit ahead of distribution to the hundreds of the NHS Covid-19 vaccination centres run by local doctors opening across England. (Photo by Jacob King)

Griffith virologist Dr Adam Taylor said while childhood immunisations for things like hepatitis, measles and tetanus were not a certain indication of a COVID-19 vaccination uptake, the Gold Coast numbers were encouraging.

“I think it is obvious that the roll out of the vaccine will come down to public confidence,” he said.

“We can take solace in how seriously our health professionals are taking the trust of the public, especially given recent developments with the UQ Vaccine. It has highlighted how important that public confidence is and how our scientists will stop and reassess the design not matter how far along they are.

“I think it is nice to see that figures haven’t dipped on the Gold Coast. That is a clear indication that public health is on the forefront of people’s minds.”

A COVID-19 vaccine is hoped to be available in March 2021.

Gold Coast public health physician Dr Vicki Slinko said the team had worked hard to ensure vaccination rates had remained consistent despite school closures.

Dr Slinko said figures year to year were a better indication overall of vaccination uptake.

“The areas where we do see lower rates on the Gold Coast tend to have smaller populations so it is less of a reflection on the region overall,” Dr Slinko said.

“What we did also see was a jump in influenza vaccination rates over the winter season.”

Dr Slinko said in preparation for a national COVID-19 vaccination roll out, a survey would be taken of local parents as part of the school immunisation program.

“At this stage we don’t even know for sure which vaccination it is going to be, but a survey will give us a good indication of the attitude of the local population,” she said.

“We are proud of the fact we were able to improve rates of the five-year-old age group this year, which is a tough effort with the pandemic.”

SUBURB IMMUNISATION RATE AT 5 YEARS:

Gold Coast Hinterland - 89.3

Surfers Paradise - 91.0

Coolangatta - 91.6

Mudgeeraba -Tallebudgera -  92.7

Nerang - 92.8

Broadbeach-Burleigh-  92.9

Robina - 93.3

Ormeau-Oxenford - 93.9

Gold Coast-North - 94.6

Southport - 95.4 

EARLIER: ‘No jab no fly’ policy could give false security

QANTAS needs to answer more questions about its “no jab no fly” policy according to a Gold Coast Health leader who said the rule could serve as a false security blanket in avoiding a new COVID-19 wave.

Bond University Professor Katrina Bramstedt PhD of the Faculty of Health Sciences & Medicine said the proposal put forward by the major airline for international travel still had too many unknowns.

In November Qantas CEO Alan Joyce said the company was looking at changing terms and conditions for international travellers to get a vaccination before they can get on the aircraft.

“We are very early in the game for proposals like this, at this stage there is no licenced approved vaccine. So they are putting this plan forward without a vaccine available,” Prof Bramstedt said.

QANTAS CEO Alan Joyce. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Flavio Brancaleone

“Even when available we don’t know how many strains the vaccine will apply to.”

Prof Bramstedt said given the variety of strains found in different parts of the globe it was unlikely the vaccine rule could cover all world travellers.

“We know there are multiple strains out there because we know there are cases of people contracting the virus twice.

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“Essentially the question of how effective it is, is unknown because we don’t know how long immunity lasts either, so it is a big policy to base on so many unknowns.

“I can understand that we want to get the economy going and here in Australia international travel is extremely important.

“On paper this proposal sounds really exciting and really good but when you start pulling back the layers it isn't so simple.

“It isn’t like a passport, there will be limitations.”

Qantas has a new “no jab no fly” rule. (Photo by Daniel SLIM / AFP)

The medical ethisicist previously published a study on the ethics of immunity passports for those that had recovered from the disease.

It suggested that consequences could range from identity theft to people intentionally exposing themselves to COVID-19 in order to obtain one.

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“These ethical concerns heighten the need for policy advisers to reflect beyond the science when they consider enacting antibody passports.”

Originally published as Gold Coast vaccination rates on the up post pandemic as health experts ready for COVID vaccine.