Supported by Northern Queensland Primary Health Network (NQPHN), an in-reach Commonwealth Government vaccination team from Healthcare Australia (HCA) visited Star of the Sea Elders Village on Thursday Island, and Hope Vale Aged Care to administer vaccines.

NQPHN Chief Executive Officer Robin Whyte said the vaccination tours for aged care residents and workers in North Queensland were an important step in protecting older Australians.

“Aged care residents, especially First Nations peoples, are among the most vulnerable to the impacts of COVID-19, and we need to protect them to the best of our ability throughout this pandemic,” Ms Whyte said.

“I’d like to thank everyone involved in the rollout of vaccinations this week, including the vaccine providers and aged care residents and staff who helped contribute to protecting themselves and their community.”

To check your eligibility for a COVID-19 vaccine, visit the COVID-19 Vaccine Eligibility Checker: (https://covid-vaccine.healthdirect.gov.au/eligibility), or alternatively you can call the National Coronavirus and COVID-19 Vaccination Helpline on 1800 020 080.

The Queensland Government, Queensland Aboriginal and Islander Health Council (QAIHC) and the Institute for Urban Indigenous Health (IUIH) produced the COVID-19 vaccination campaign.

The Make the Choice campaign aims to help address the gap in vaccination rates between First Nations people and the general population, with the overall vaccination rate for First Nations people almost half the vaccination rate of non-First Nations people.

The Make the Choice campaign is a new website that is filled with helpful and easy to understand information about COVID-19 vaccinations and the vaccination process to help inform the choice about getting vaccinated against COVID-19.

Find out more at www.makethechoice.com.au

An Employee Assistance Program (EAP) is a work-based intervention program designed to enhance the emotional, mental, and general psychological wellbeing of all employees and includes services for immediate family members.

To access this confidential service, please contact AccessEAP on 1800 818 728 and identify as one of these groups when calling into our service, starting with Northern Queensland Primary Health Network, then either Chemist Staff or GP staff.

For more information on AccessEAP, visit their website.

NQPHN has also created an EAP support poster to advise staff of the service availability:

• Download poster (General Practices)
• Download poster (Pharmacies)