The Victorian Government announced on 3 February that Western Health (WH) would be one of three Melbourne metropolitan health services to manage COVID vaccination hubs. This hub will work directly with other health services within the Western metropolitan region of Melbourne to ensure that the vaccine is offered according to those prioritised under the system designed and directed by the Commonwealth with support from the Victorian Government.
Our hub will be responsible for managing the vaccinations of staff across multiple health services including the Royal Melbourne; the Women’s; the Children’s; Peter Mac, as well as Werribee Mercy and Djerriwarrh. Western is also working with a number of private hospital providers in the West Metro Cluster to share information and assist with the roll out of the priority vaccination programs. In addition, we are working in partnership with Melbourne Airport to support the vaccination of port-of-entry workers.
A large expert team of Western Health staff have spent a number of weeks overseeing Vaccination Hub planning, medical guidance, staff recruitment, safety, logistics and infrastructure, under the direction of Executive Director Nursing and Midwifery, Adj Prof Shane Crowe and Lisa Smith, Project Manager, and with the expert medical guidance of Dr Marion Kainer, Head of WH’s Infectious Diseases Unit and A/Prof Michelle Giles, Infectious Diseases and Immunisation Physician.
A huge amount of work has already been undertaken in a short amount of time and I would like to thank all of our fabulous staff across many areas involved so far for this massive effort.
The responsibility to manage a vaccination hub is a significant one and Western Health is dedicated to providing a safe and efficient vaccination program. We are strongly committed to fairness and equity in the way we manage the distribution and vaccinations.
Regards
Russell Harrison
Chief Executive Officer
Vaccination Hub Microsite
A new section of the Western Health COVID-19 Information microsite dedicated to the Vaccination Hub has been developed. It is designed to provide information for all staff supported by the Vaccination Hub, including those in our fellow health services. It will contain Hub information and answers to frequently asked questions about the COVID-19 vaccines, links to reputable sources of information and details of how the vaccine will be administered to health care workers and others.
Vaccination Hub Webinar
To provide information on the plans for vaccine rollout and commence a transparent communication process about the COVID-19 Vaccination Hub, a Webinar was recorded on 9 February 2021. This Webinar presents information about the Vaccination Hub and provides answers to frequently asked questions about the COVID vaccines, how they work, their safety and efficacy, Commonwealth designated eligibility and how the vaccines will be distributed and administered. Please click here to view the Webinar and access associated slides.
Timelines & Priority for vaccination
Decisions about who is offered the vaccine as a priority are not ours to make.
The Victorian Government is working closely with the Commonwealth to ensure the vaccination program is implemented rapidly, safely and equitably.
Australia’s COVID-19 vaccines will be available in phases, with the Commonwealth prioritising groups based on expert medical and public health advice.
People eligible to receive priority access to a COVID-19 vaccine as part of Phase 1a include frontline health care workers in high risk areas, e.g. including hospital staff working in COVID-19 testing facilities, COVID and suspected COVID Wards, Emergency Departments and Intensive Care Units.
Every health worker will receive the opportunity to receive a vaccine as part of Phase 1a and 1b, which are in the early stages of the program, however this is still dependent on availability and quantity.
No date has been set for the first round of priority vaccinations. We expect to roll out the first doses of the Pfizer vaccine in late February-early March, depending on vaccine availability. The supply of vaccine will be limited initially, and will gradually increase. As other vaccines are approved via the Therapeutics Goods Administration, they will become available via the Vaccination Hub and our sub-hubs.
Vaccinations will be voluntary. The Vaccination Hub will aim to ensure that factual information is available to staff to allow them to make an informed decision.
Location of vaccination sites
The primary Hub for our region is being established at Sunshine Hospital, with capacity for up to 60 cubicles, in a purpose-built semi-permanent facility being constructed in the ground floor of the multi-deck car park. A huge amount of work has already been undertaken in a very short amount of time to construct and prepare this space to be a vaccination site, initially for the Pfizer vaccine.
As the Pfizer vaccine must be stored at an ultra-low temperature, one of the team’s priority jobs to prepare the primary hub has been the purchase of an ultra-low temperature pharmaceutical freezer. Click here to view a video of the new freezer in action, noting that the staff member pictured is dressed in ice protection PPE.
The behind the scenes work setting up the primary hub came to national attention last Friday in a story and photo on the front page of The Australian. Read more here.
Western Health is working with Royal Melbourne Hospital to establish a Parkville ‘sub-hub’ to provide easier access to the vaccine for hospital staff within the Parkville precinct. We are also working with Mercy Werribee to establish a sub-hub to cover the Werribee precinct. In addition, we are working in partnership with Melbourne Airport to support the vaccination of port-of-entry workers.
Other strategic locations across the west of Melbourne may be established in the future.
Recruitment and training of staff
The Hub will be staffed by experienced staff who will provide overarching supervision of vaccination and recovery. We are currently recruiting a large number of nurses to administer the vaccine, as well as other staff who will fill support roles. The response to our advertising has been fantastic, so we are confident that we will be able to staff clinics once the vaccine is available. All staff working within the Vaccination Hub will receive specific training mandated by the Commonwealth and the Department of Health Victoria to ensure that they are appropriately educated and trained to safely and effectively undertake all elements of their role.