When construction started on the $23 million Garran Surge Centre in April, authorities intended it would operate as a COVID-19 emergency overflow department.
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Thankfully, it was never used for that purpose, and instead went on to serve as a testing clinic for thousands of Canberrans to flow through.
This week, the surge centre inherited the dual purpose of a testing clinic and the ACT's first COVID-19 vaccination hub.
Coordinator Cathie O'Neill explained on Thursday it had been decked out with a dedicated medication preparation room ahead of the transition.
She said that had allowed staff to take extra precautions when they were handling the Pfizer vaccine.
"The vaccine actually needs to be diluted in the first instance and then drawn up into the individual syringe doses," Ms O'Neill said.
"[A pharmacist and a nurse] work in tandem to do that, cross checking the whole way.
"Labels are then prepared for each of those syringes and then the nurse that's actually delivering the vaccine checks that against the label."
Ms O'Neill said that triple-checking process made her confident there wouldn't be any issues with how the vaccine was administered in the ACT.
Recently, two Queensland aged care residents - a 94-year-old woman and an 88-year-old man - were given four times the recommended dose of the Pfizer vaccine by a doctor who hadn't done the appropriate training.
Healthcare Australia, one of the two companies contracted by the federal government to administer vaccines in aged care centres, confirmed on Thursday its chief executive officer Jason Cartwright had stood aside during an internal review into the incident.
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Ms O'Neill said any nurse who administered the vaccine in the ACT had to show proof they'd completed the relevant training beforehand.
"The biggest difference for this vaccine is around using a multi-dose vial - that hasn't been used in Australia for some time - and also the cold chain management," she said.
"There's a range of online modules that anybody delivering the vaccine must complete.
"We make sure we sight their evidence of completion of that before they're even rostered on a shift, and in addition to that, they undergo some induction training with us to make sure they're familiar with the actual workflow that will be used here."
The Pfizer vaccine has to be kept at minus 70 degrees.
Ms O'Neill said she hoped the ACT wouldn't see anything like what happened in Queensland.
She said the first week of the territory's COVID-19 vaccine rollout had, as at Thursday, gone "remarkably smoothly".
"We've had three no-shows this week which is not too bad given the numbers of appointments we've actually booked," Ms O'Neill said.
"We've been able to replace those appointments very quickly with others so that we haven't wasted any appointments.
"There's been nobody that's turned up here and then decided not to get the vaccine."
Ms O'Neill said the Garran Surge Centre was on track to deliver its target of 1000 vaccines in the first week of the ACT's rollout.
She said the centre would get shipments of the Pfizer vaccine on a weekly basis, and maintain its volume of 1000 jabs a week for the next two weeks.
"Then we'll be starting our second dose scheduling, so we'll increase volumes from there," Ms O'Neill said.
"Beyond that, we're just waiting on further advice from the Commonwealth."
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Cassandra Morgan
It has never been more important for Canberrans to be able to access reliable and accurate information about health. As The Canberra Times’ health reporter, I am committed to ensuring our readers have access to this. I, like many in the territory, have family members who work in the sector. Although providing comprehensive coverage on the coronavirus pandemic is obviously my number one priority, I aim to frequently shed light on the fantastic work our frontline professionals do, as well as the challenges they face. Email me tips and story ideas at: c.morgan@canberratimes.com.au.
It has never been more important for Canberrans to be able to access reliable and accurate information about health. As The Canberra Times’ health reporter, I am committed to ensuring our readers have access to this. I, like many in the territory, have family members who work in the sector. Although providing comprehensive coverage on the coronavirus pandemic is obviously my number one priority, I aim to frequently shed light on the fantastic work our frontline professionals do, as well as the challenges they face. Email me tips and story ideas at: c.morgan@canberratimes.com.au.
