Coronavirus: AstraZeneca appointments available in Sydney’s outbreak LGAs

Just how hard is it to get a vaccine appointment in Sydney’s Covid hot zone? You might be surprised.

Local doctors warn those under 40 in southwestern Sydney are still insisting on holding out until they can get access to the Pfizer vaccine. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Kelly Barnes

Locked-down residents in Sydney’s Covid-ravaged southwest can walk in for an AstraZeneca inoculation just about any time they want — but local doctors warn those under 40 are still insisting on holding out until they can get access to the Pfizer vaccine.

As the city recorded an alarming spike in infections on Friday, NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard encouraged residents throughout Sydney’s coronavirus corridor to avoid any delays and turn to the state’s oversupply of AstraZeneca vaccine.

“Can I just say that the short answer here is there are oceans of AstraZeneca in NSW. There are also vast amounts of virus in southwestern Sydney,” Mr Hazzard said on Friday.

“What we’re saying is your obligation to yourself, the community, NSW and indeed Australia – because this could leak further into other states – is to get the jabs of AstraZeneca.

“There is no shortage of AstraZeneca vaccines but rather those willing to take the appointment, it seems.”

Despite the minister’s stark warning, practices and clinics throughout the area were still waiting for an influx of residents booking in for a shot.

Even under-40s, who had previously been dissuaded from opting for the AstraZeneca vaccine without medical approval, were able to register for the jab hassle-free at dozens of participating practices, clinics and chemists in Sydney’s southwest as soon as Sunday.

The Eldridge Road Medical Health Centre at the Bankstown Lidcombe Hospital had seven appointments available as early as Sunday and between 17 and 31 appointments available daily from Monday.

It was a similar story in Fairfield, where the first available appointment of five at JP Nicholas Pty Ltd was Sunday. In the following seven days, appointments were available every day, some of which had at least two appointments available on the hour between 8am and 5pm.

Things were a little busier at the Bankstown Family Medical Practice, where the first available appointment was Wednesday at 2.30pm – but from then on prospective patients could just about pick any time they liked.

Jamal Rifi, who runs the Belmore Medical Centre, said his practice had administered hundreds of injections in the past week but that was not nearly enough to safeguard the community against the threat of the highly virulent Delta variant.

“In the last 10 days I gave 320 first doses and 433 second doses. This is unacceptable in the current environment – we need to have double the number of first doses,” Dr Rifi said.

“People have passed their judgment and they are waiting on the Pfizer vaccine. They’re not hesitating getting the (AstraZeneca) vaccine, they’re just refusing to have the AstraZeneca vaccine.”