Health
Indigenous communities left behind in New South Wales vaccine deployments, numbers show | Indigenous Australians
trust New South Wales According to government data, there is a large gap between indigenous and non-indigenous Covid vaccination rates in all parts of the state, with the north-central coast and western New South Wales being the worst.
The numbers obtained by Guardian Australia are the first to show how different indigenous communities are being left behind in the deployment of vaccines. Detailed data from the rejected federal government..
Health services managed by the Aboriginal community show that there is an urgent need for governments to work with them to stop the spread of the disease, as the data show.
Currently, the town of Wilcannia, which has a majority of Aboriginal population, is a state Covid’s highest rate Per person. On Friday, 58 cases were recorded in a population of about 750. This is triple. More than the price of a hotspot in Sydney.
In the far west of New South Wales, one of the largest differences in the proportion of fully vaccinated indigenous and non-indigenous people is one of the smallest in the proportion of those who have been vaccinated once. .. This may reflect efforts to increase vaccination coverage in the region over the past few weeks.
Non-Indigenous vaccination rates are indigenous in four regional health districts (North Central Coast, Western NSW, Far West NSW, Northern NSW), despite Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders being designated as priorities. It is more than twice as much as. A group of vaccine deployment plans after March 2021.
In five other regions, indigenous immunization rates are slightly below half of non-indigenous immunization rates.
Low take-up rate Due to vaccine hesitation According to Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Aboriginal Federal Minister Ken Wyatt. However, medical services managed by the Aboriginal community need consistent supply and targeted messages and outreach from trusted Aboriginal healthcare professionals to fill the expanding vaccination gap. Stated.
“We know that [the health services] It should be the same with Covid, as they have successfully deployed influenza and pneumonia vaccines over the years and they know the supplies needed to vaccinate the entire population of these diseases. ” Said the NSW Secretary-General. Dr. Peter Malouf, Aboriginal Health and Medical Research Council, said.
“Not only to close the vaccination gap, but also to manage the current crisis, Aboriginal people who know the community need to take the lead. They know the type of message the community needs. I am. “
The Council is the premier institution of medical services managed by the Aboriginal community throughout New South Wales. According to Malouf, the service knows how to talk to their community to overcome vaccine hesitation.
“They are afraid and scared. I see ADF and a lot of people coming to the community and everyone is wearing face masks and suits. It hurt the community,” he said. Told.
Jamie Newman, CEO of Orange Aboriginal Medical Services in Midwestern New South Wales, told ABCTV this week that it was time for the government to respond.
“My homework is over. I contacted the community. Our people are happy. I was told earlier that a woman wants to be vaccinated. But we have the number of vaccines. If we are dripping, and wait for the government to continue to replenish us, we will surpass the eight ball. “
Newman said recent efforts such as drive-through tests and vaccination clinics, which are popular in the mainstream community, may not always be effective for Aboriginal people.