By Renee Wood
Healesville medical centres are being inundated with people in need of receiving a Covid-19 booster shot.
Yarra Valley Clinic Practice Manager Leonie Redshaw said the vaccination booster appointments are booked out until the end of February.
“We’re trying desperately to make extra days available but it comes down to the ordering process and making sure we have the vaccines in stock,” Ms Redshaw said.
A stark contrast to the end of the year where the practice found it needing to throw away stock because of the storing process with Pfizer and no appointments requested.
“We had been ordering the same amount and it was being used very, very quickly and then all of a sudden it just dropped off once Victoria got to 90 per cent double vaccinated, we didn’t have that need and so we did have to discard some vaccines.”
There is also now concern Pfizer booster supplies will be changed after the medical centre received a notice from distribution companies that supply may be affected.
Healesville Medical Centre is also seeing a very high demand for boosters, even more so now that the third jab is mandated for certain sectors.
Health care providers are again urging the community to have patience as they continue to do their best to serve the community.
“Please just be patient, our reception staff are doing their very, very best with what the government regulations and stipulations have been on us and we can only do so much.
“We have to make sure we have supply and we also have to make sure that we are available to provide medical care for the patients that require it. The other health issues haven’t gone away.”
