Tamworth vaccination clinics for 5 to 11 year olds a success as hundreds turn out for jab

Hundreds of parents brought their children along to receive the jab, but it was far from a scary affair with plenty of fun to be had on a colourful weekend at the likes of Smith Street Practice, Northwest Health and Tamworth hospital.

At Northwest Health, around 270 jabs were administered, which was a huge success according to Dr Ian Kamerman - even though it is less than what they would normally do for adults.

"It is less than we would for adults, but we want to take our time with kids as well, we don't really want to just push them through, that would be inappropriate," he said.

"We were just doing it slowly, at their own pace with mum or dad with them which takes a bit more time, but all the kids were quite keen to have their vaccine and quite keen to show off that they'd been vaccinated."

As part of the effort to make the kids feel comfortable, extra details were put in place.

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"Some of the staff dressed up, the TVs were all playing kids' shows, there were also some decorations and coloured band-aids," he said.

He said the turnout was consistent across both days, with the clinic fully booked out on each occasion.

Meanwhile, at the Tamworth hospital on Saturday, there were more kids from around the region who arrived to protect themselves from COVID-19.

A Hunter New England Health spokesperson said the organisation was pleased with the turnout.

"Since the COVID-19 vaccination program was extended to children ages 5 to 11 years old last week, we've seen an overwhelming response from the community," they said.

"We want to thank the dozens of kids as well as their parents who have already attended Tamworth hospital to get vaccinated - helping protect themselves, their loved ones and the wider community from the ongoing transmission of COVID-19.

"To ensure children have the best possible experience, vaccination bookings are required."

All children in the 5 to 11 age range receive a Pfizer shot, which is one-third the adult dosage.

The second dose is then administered eight weeks later.

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