Foster and Toora Medical Centre

Flu Vaccination available Saturday week

THE first Flu Vaccination clinic will be on April 17th at the Foster Secondary School as a drive-through, similar to last year.*

We are now open for bookings by ringing the clinic on 5682 2088. We are only taking bookings for this one day at this stage and, unlike last year, there will be no text reminders. You will be given a time to present on the 17th April.

This clinic will be for patients between the ages of 65 and 75 only.  

This is because we are immunising our older patients for COVID first and the timing is important. There needs to be at least 2 weeks between any COVID vaccination and the flu shot (and vice versa!).

We are not keeping a waiting list at the clinic. If you cannot make the 17th do not worry. There will be plenty of others which will be soon advertised.

On the day please assist us by easily accessible clothing for the upper arm and come at your designated time, not early!

* The Clinic will be in front of the Foster Secondary College Gymnasium (Pioneer St Foster) in the bus turning lane and entry will be from the Hoddle end.

Covid Vaccination

WE continue to immunise our older patients and are presently working through our over 80 year olds. We have given over 300 shots now and have been pleased with the uptake. We understand that there is a long way to go and thankyou again for your patience. If you are 80 or over please ring for a vaccination appointment.

The vaccines have now been given to over 300 million people worldwide and to over 840 thousand Australians. These are excellent vaccinations that massively reduce the effects of COVID-19 infection. That needs to be remembered both when we read about the short-term potential side-effects but particularly when we note that when international borders open up, COVID will become part of the ‘normal’ Australian viral environment. Vaccination represents our best chance of mitigating its effects.

The COVID vaccination is not free of side-effects. These include a sore arm at the injection site which may swell and become red (not dissimilar to what the flu shot can cause), fatigue, muscle aches and joint pains, fevers, feeling lousy, headaches and nausea. Sounds like an impressive list but most people don’t get side-effects and those that do usually only suffer for a day or two.  

Some fewer people will experience more significant flu-like symptoms from the vaccine compared to other common vaccinations, and may need time away from normal activities. For the Pfizer (COMIRNATY) vaccine, used for stage 1a people, these symptoms are more common after the second dose. For the AstraZeneca vaccine, which is what all in stage 1b will get, these symptoms are more common after the first dose.

It appears that older people have less side-effects than the younger age groups.

The information on health.gov.au is updated regularly and is recommended. Common vaccine questions are posed and answered; we again urge readers to take advantage of this resource. Accurate information is needed to help ensure we get as many people vaccinated as possible. Please keep an eye on our facebook page and website also for latest vaccine information.

Comments are closed.