A World War II survivor and Prime Minister Scott Morrison are among the first people in Australia to receive the COVID-19 jab in a surprise early start to the nation’s vaccine rollout this morning.An upbeat Mr Morrison donned an Australian flag-themed face mask as he rolled up his sleeve for the injection just before 11.30am today.He is one of a small number of people to receive the first dose of the Pfizer vaccine at a medical clinic in Castle Hill in Sydney’s north-west, before the large-scale rollout across Australia commences tomorrow.

He was asked questions about his medical history and his health on the day before receiving the shot in his left arm.The very first person in Australia to receive the first Pfizer dose was aged care resident and World War II survivor Jane Malysiak, who sat alongside Mr Morrison for what the PM called an “historic day for Australia”.The 84-year-old was one of two aged care residents to receive the vaccination today, along with aged care staff and disability care staff and residents.

Mr Morrison told the media he had elected to lead the way in receiving the Pfizer vaccine in order to boost public confidence.

“I have, by my own example today, joined by the Chief Nurse of Midwifery and the Chief Medical Officer of our country, together with those Australians who are in the top priority of this vaccination program, to say to you, Australians, it’s safe, it’s important,” Mr Morrison said.He said that the country had “made its Australian way” through the pandemic and would continue to do so as the vaccination program progressed.”Greg (Hunt) talked about putting shoulders to the job,” he said.”Today I put my shoulder to the job and that is what I am asking Australians to do, in joining me and all of their fellow Australians as we continue on the successful path we have been on.”The first Pfizer doses had been officially scheduled to be begin tomorrow but Health Minister Greg Hunt told the ABC’s Insiders program this has been brought forward by a day.

VACCINATION HUB LOCATIONS 

Search the map or table to find Phase 1A vaccination sites near you, commencing February 22. Vaccinations in this phase are available to aged care and residential disability care workers and residents and border, quarantine and frontline health care workers.

Mr Hunt says “there was a very strong focus on the need for key leaders, not the Parliament, not the Cabinet, not even the leadership group, but a cross-party group, to provide that confidence [in the vaccine]”.He added that the opposition leader, two other members of the opposition and Greens leader Adam Bandt had also been invited to receive the vaccine over the next few days.”This is a cross-parliamentary view where parliamentarians don’t have any special status,” Mr Hunt said.”The research shows that people want to see that if we believe it’s safe, then that will give them greater confidence.

“Many people are worried that this has been too quick and we have to show that it has been through a full, thorough assessment and that we believe in the safety ourselves.”Phase 1A of the vaccination program is set to begin in full tomorrow, with up to 1.4 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine to be given to hotel quarantine workers, frontline healthcare workers and aged care staff and residents in the coming weeks.Speaking at a press conference following today’s vaccinations, Mr Hunt said he hoped to see 60,000 vaccinations across Australia in the next week.These would incorporate people from 240 aged care centres and 90 towns and suburbs nationwide, “from Alice Springs to Albany to Altona and so many others”.Larger volumes of the AstraZeneca vaccine will become available in March for Phase 1B of the rollout, when the vaccine becomes available to people aged over 70, high-risk workers such as Defence Force personnel and police, and the disabled and vulnerable.Around 4000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine are due to arrive in Sydney today, with the state aiming to vaccinate around 12,000 frontline workers in the next three weeks.

Three vaccination hubs operating out of the Royal Prince Alfred, Westmead and Liverpool Hospitals will aim to vaccinate 1100 people every day, with border workers, hotel quarantine staff and frontline health workers the first in line.This includes staff at the three hospitals, with 480 Westmead workers set to get the jab tomorrow.In Victoria, which has faced numerous outbreaks within its quarantine hotels, the hotels will have their own dedicated vaccination clinics.The first doses of the Pfizer vaccine are due to land at The Alfred hospital in Melbourne today.The vaccine rollout will be coordinated from the Alfred, with thousands of doses distributed to the state’s ten quarantine hotels and two health hotels.

A vaccine centre will also be set up at Melbourne Airport to vaccinate flight crew, customs workers and other airport staff.The state is set to receive 11,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine every week, with Phase 1A expected to take around 8 to 10 weeks to complete.A third Adelaide hospital has been fast-tracked to open as a vaccine hub for South Australia’s vaccination roll out.Meanwhile in Queensland, hotel quarantine workers, border staff and frontline health workers will be informed of their eligibility for vaccination via text message.Around 100 of the first in line are expected to receive a text message today, telling them to attend the Gold Coast University Hospital to get the vaccine tomorrow.

The hospital is the state’s first vaccination hub, with some of the staff delivering the vaccines to be among the first to receive the jab.Chief Health Officer Dr Jeanette Young has flagged that she is hoping the start of the vaccination program will signal the end of the state’s recurring border closures which have wrecked havoc on Queensland’s struggling tourism industry.However, the vaccination rollout has not been without its detractors.

Yesterday, thousands across the nation’s capitals held rallies to protest the arrival of the vaccines.Gatherings were held in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, and Perth, with a few hundred people at each.In Victoria, where the state has just emerged from a snap five-day lockdown, pepper spray was deployed and a number of arrests were reportedly made.Protesters gathered in Fawkner Park in South Yarra yesterday afternoon before marching down St Kilda Road.Video shows a number of people being arrested, and some people in the crowds were pepper sprayed.

Celebrity chef Pete Evans, who was banned from Instagram this week, spoke at the Sydney event in the Domain.

Source: 9news.com.au