The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) is advising patients that it is sensible for them to receive both COVID-19 vaccine doses from their GP.
It follows comments from the Queensland Government today urging people to receive their first vaccine from their GP and their second from a pharmacy.
RACGP President Dr Karen Price said that it is unnecessary to switch providers between doses and that general practice is a ready-made mass vaccination program equipped to do the full job.
“GPs are doing a tremendous job delivering COVID-19 vaccinations right across the country, including Queensland,” she said.
“General practice has quietly gone about delivering more than half of all COVID-19 vaccines nation-wide. We are the backbone of the vaccine rollout, with 5,150 general practices administering vaccines and more coming on board with 190 more practices due to join in the next fortnight. To date, general practice has provided over six and a half million doses across Australia.
“GPs are not prone to patting themselves on the back or making a lot of noise celebrating their accomplishments. So, the incredible work they are doing in communities across Australia is flying under the radar.”
Dr Price said that receiving both vaccine doses from the same general practice is important for coordination of care.
“If a patient has had their first vaccine with their GP, it is better that they go back to their GP to get the second dose, so that we know the person is fully vaccinated,” she said.
“It doesn’t make any sense to go to a separate provider and fragment care. General practices have the capacity to deliver both jabs and it makes the entire process more straightforward for patients. When you receive your first jab you can simply book in your second at the practice and put it in your diary.
“If a patient opts to receive their vaccinations from a pharmacy that is a choice they are free to make. This is a not a matter of us versus them and we have been clear on that throughout the vaccine rollout. What doesn’t make sense is switching between doses.
“Many patients want to receive their COVID-19 jab from their usual GP because that is what they routinely do for other immunisations, including the yearly influenza vaccine. There is absolutely nothing wrong with continuing that practice when it comes to the COVID-19 vaccine.
“In a time of great uncertainty and, for some people anxiety, keeping normal healthcare routines in place can be really beneficial.
“The messaging today adds further confusion for patients wanting to receive the vaccine. Patients are already suffering from ‘information overload’, having to navigate frequently changing advice and differing eligibility criteria between states and territories and the Commonwealth”.
The RACGP President also hit back at claims that a surge in vaccine demand would leave general practices running out of supply.
“The amount of available stock does differ across the state and we all know there is already constrained supply of the Pfizer vaccine Australia wide; however, to suggest that general practices are running out of vaccines state-wide is simply incorrect,” she said.
“In any case, the mix and match model proposed by the Queensland Government today doesn’t fix supply.”
The RACGP is providing information and resources on the vaccine to support GPs and patients. The information is available on the RACGP website here.
