Doctor warns jab hesitant not to wait as South West approaches 60 per cent fully vaxxed

Almost three quarters of South West residents have rolled up their sleeves for their first COVID jab, with nearly 60 per cent of the region’s population fully vaccinated.

Health Department officials revealed the promising statistics just days after regional WA hit a milestone 200,000 vaccines administered to country communities.

An Eaton doctor has applauded the South West’s vaccine uptake, but urged anyone still hesitating to book in for their jab now to give the community a better chance of managing potential outbreaks in the future.

Currently 74.8 per cent of South West residents aged over 12 have had their first jab, with 57.2 per cent fully vaccinated.

This is just shy of the 60.6 per cent of WA residents who have received both jabs.

GP and practice manager at The Health Hub in Eaton, Dr Craig Hookham, said he was pleased to see these figures.

“It is fantastic to see the ongoing progression of COVID-19 vaccination rates in the South West,” he said.

“Our vaccination clinics continue to be booked out and generally people are willing to both protect themselves and the community.”

The practice, which administers more than 500 jabs a week, recently held a superhero-theme vaccination clinic aimed at encouraging younger groups to be vaccinated.

“With a large turnout and positive feedback the clinic was a huge success,” Dr Hookham said.

“The Health Hub at Eaton Fair continues to remain enthusiastic about COVID-19 vaccination and we hope that we can get the vaccination rate of those eligible over 90 per cent.”

Dr Hookham outlined how higher vaccination rates could help prevent the spread of the virus in the event of an outbreak, but warned people not to wait much longer before booking their jab.

“If the community can achieve greater than 90 per cent we will be in a much better position to safely manage the COVID-19 virus once it begins circulating in the community,” he said.

“We thank the community for stepping up so far but ask that those “waiting” or “hesitating” consider being vaccinated now and helping the South West community get through this the best we can.