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Katie Woolf spoke with AMA Australian Medical Association NT President Dr Robert Parker · 360 with Katie Woolf

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  Speaker 1: Mix one o four point nine dot com for all
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  Speaker 1: the latest news and information now three sixty with Katie Wolf.
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  Speaker 1: Everyone is listening Mix one oh four point nine one
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  Speaker 1: hundred percent.
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  Speaker 2: Quite a bit happening around the place.
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  Speaker 3: We know that at the moment, doctors are calling for
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  Speaker 3: more effective communication strategies to convince people to get the
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  Speaker 3: COVID nineteen vaccine, warning that Ozzie's are sitting ducks until
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  Speaker 3: a much larger portion of the population is protected. So
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  Speaker 3: the Australian Medical Association nationally is worried about the COVID
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  Speaker 3: nineteen complacency that we are seeing, and earlier in the
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  Speaker 3: week we did indeed talk about the number of Territorians
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  Speaker 3: who've been vaccinated. We know that we're not really where
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  Speaker 3: we should be at this point in time. The Chief
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  Speaker 3: Minister talked us through why we are in the situation
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  Speaker 3: that we're in and that we are looking at. You know,
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  Speaker 3: when we go out to some of the remote communities
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  Speaker 3: vaccinating the whole community at once, and some of those
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  Speaker 3: things are having a bit of an impact on the
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  Speaker 3: number of people that have been vaccinated in the territory
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  Speaker 3: so far. But joining us on the line right now
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  Speaker 3: to talk further about this. The head of the Australian
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  Speaker 3: Medical Association's Northern Territory branch, Dr Robert Parker, Good morning
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  Speaker 3: to you.
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  Speaker 4: Morning, Katy. I'm talking to you from cold hober You
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  Speaker 4: College Congress there, Oh.
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  Speaker 2: There you go.
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  Speaker 3: Well, we're working hard, no doubt, but I'm not envious
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  Speaker 3: of you being freezing cold.
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  Speaker 2: There, Dr Parker. It's beautiful here at the moment.
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  Speaker 3: Now, I do want to talk to you about this
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  Speaker 3: situation where we've got doctors nationally calling for a more
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  Speaker 3: effective communications strategy in an effort to try to convince
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  Speaker 3: people to get the COVID nineteen vaccine, warning that Ozzie's
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  Speaker 3: are sitting ducks until a much larger portion of the
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  Speaker 3: population is protected.
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  Speaker 2: Dr Parker, what needs to happen here?
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  Speaker 4: Well, Katie, I think I think thanks to all the
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  Speaker 4: very significant health protection measures of the Australian government start
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  Speaker 4: up to date, we are very well, we have been
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  Speaker 4: very well protected and unfortunately it's an air of run
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  Speaker 4: reality because the virus is still around. I mean, there's
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  Speaker 4: probably no better case at the moment of Taiwan, where
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  Speaker 4: they've done in a very effective health program. No one
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  Speaker 4: was immunized. Now they've got a massive problem where the
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  Speaker 4: viruses come in and there's massive community concern and pressure
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  Speaker 4: for people to get vaccinated when there's very low vaccination rates. Really,
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  Speaker 4: this virus is going to be around the planet probably
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  Speaker 4: for the next few years, and really the only effective
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  Speaker 4: measure we've got at the moment to deal with it
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  Speaker 4: is vaccination. And you know, again, I think people, I mean,
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  Speaker 4: we've had these lockdowns in Melbourne, We've had the occasional
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  Speaker 4: looks in other states where people have suddenly become aware
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  Speaker 4: of the very real consequences of COVID. We've escaped the
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  Speaker 4: massive consequences overseas where there's been very large numbers of
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  Speaker 4: people affected, large numbers of debts which have affected a
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  Speaker 4: lot of families personally, and I think that's made people
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  Speaker 4: a lot more aware of the value of vaccination. So
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  Speaker 4: good on the Australian government for keeping us safe. But
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  Speaker 4: if we need to progress forward, we need to we
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  Speaker 4: all need to be vaccinated.
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  Speaker 3: Yeah, and it does seem as though we are a
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  Speaker 3: little bit complacent here in Australia.
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  Speaker 2: I think you've hit the nail on the head there.
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  Speaker 3: We've just not been impacted in the same way that
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  Speaker 3: people in other countries have been so I guess to
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  Speaker 3: some degree we feel a bit removed from it all.
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  Speaker 3: You know, how can we really entice people to get
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  Speaker 3: out there and roll up their sleeves.
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  Speaker 4: Well, again, part of the whole issue of courses, this
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  Speaker 4: fear about the AZ vaccination for people under fifty, and
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  Speaker 4: I think people have got a right to be fearful,
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  Speaker 4: but to be well informed. And it is a very
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  Speaker 4: very rare event, this issue of blood clots. But I
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  Speaker 4: think people again maybe waiting for the more availability of
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  Speaker 4: the fires A vaccine.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah.
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  Speaker 4: I mean, if I'm over fifty years probably everyone doing so,
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  Speaker 4: I'd be rushing it to get the AZ. I've had
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  Speaker 4: the Visor vaccine, but if I had, I'd have been
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  Speaker 4: very happy to have the AZ vaccine. And I think
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  Speaker 4: everyone you know has got a right to be informed
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  Speaker 4: and also concerned about the top vaccine they get. But
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  Speaker 4: as soon as the appropriate vaccination is available, they've got
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  Speaker 4: I suppose the juju to them their families in society
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  Speaker 4: to get the vaccine as soon as possible.
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  Speaker 3: Now we know here in the Northern Territory the rollout
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  Speaker 3: really hasn't been as well. The take up, I should
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  Speaker 3: say hasn't been as good as what we would hope.
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  Speaker 3: I said to the Chief Minister on Monday. On Tuesday,
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  Speaker 3: we know that now in Alice Springs, anybody over the
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  Speaker 3: age of sixteen is actually eligible to go and get
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  Speaker 3: the vaccine. It's a similar situation I understand in our
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  Speaker 3: other regional towns. Do you reckon, we just need to
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  Speaker 3: bite the bullet and do the same here in Darwin.
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  Speaker 3: Anybody over the age of sixteen should be eligible.
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  Speaker 4: Yeah, of course they should. And of course the problem is,
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  Speaker 4: as I've always emphasized, we've got thirty percent of the
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  Speaker 4: population of the territories indigenous. This population is very vulnerable
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  Speaker 4: too COVID because of the large amounts of other ruleness
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  Speaker 4: that they have, and you know, the factors that it
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  Speaker 4: gets into a place like Gaje Norrella Springs highly likely
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  Speaker 4: to spread out to the communities. Some of the communities
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  Speaker 4: such as the Tea. We are very enthusiastically embraced the
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  Speaker 4: vaccination program, and good on them. I think that's great,
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  Speaker 4: but I think there is a risk. If you know,
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  Speaker 4: it gets in to day on a rail of Springs,
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  Speaker 4: it's highly likely to get out of the communities, and
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  Speaker 4: particularly they haven't been vaccinated individuals, it's likely to lead
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  Speaker 4: to very significant problems for those individuals.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah.
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  Speaker 3: And doctor Parker, I mean there's been discussion today this
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  Speaker 3: morning about an interstate vaccine passport. I mean, would having
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  Speaker 3: to have something like that, do you reckon motivate people
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  Speaker 3: to get their vaccination potentially?
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  Speaker 4: Yeah, I think anything that works, and maybe you have
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  Speaker 4: to use a bit of the character, bit of a stick.
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  Speaker 4: But I think again this air of complacency that's currently
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  Speaker 4: affecting the Australian population because theyre real concerned. And I mean,
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  Speaker 4: you know, Taiwan is a very good example of you
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  Speaker 4: get complacent and look what happened. So I think we
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  Speaker 4: need to be very active in this process to get
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  Speaker 4: the entire population vaccinated as soon as possible.
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  Speaker 3: And doctor Parker, you are the head of the AMA,
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  Speaker 3: the Australian Medical Association for the Northern Territory, the president.
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  Speaker 3: What would you say to anybody listening this morning who
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  Speaker 3: thinks that the vaccine is not necessary?
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  Speaker 2: Be informed.
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  Speaker 4: Look at the news about Taiwan, look at what's happened
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  Speaker 4: in the UK and US where there's in large numbers
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  Speaker 4: of people have died from it, and how enthusiastic. Did
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  Speaker 4: those populations have adopted vaccination because they recognize how dangerous
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  Speaker 4: as virus is, what can happen to people, Doctor.
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  Speaker 3: Robert Parker, anything else we should be aware of this
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  Speaker 3: morning before we let you go.
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  Speaker 4: Well, it looks like we may have had a result
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  Speaker 4: with a road and a second road and to rualdo
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  Speaker 4: On Hospital. I understand there has been a study that
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  Speaker 4: is recommended a second road and to ruled On Hospital
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  Speaker 4: so we can avoid the total chaos of the kerde
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  Speaker 4: last year. And we had a blockage to the only entrance.
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  Speaker 4: So we're certainly going to be pursuing that with the
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  Speaker 4: Health Minister to see if we can get a second
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  Speaker 4: road into Urdh developed as soon as possible.
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  Speaker 2: Oh, good on you.
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  Speaker 3: I know that this is something you've been pushing hard
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  Speaker 3: for and no doubt all of the staff out there
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  Speaker 3: at Royalty and Hospital, particularly after what we saw last year,
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  Speaker 3: let us know how you progress with that, would be
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  Speaker 3: keen to catch up again.
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  Speaker 4: Oh that'll be good, Thank you, thank you.
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  Speaker 2: That is doctor Robert Parker there, the head of the
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  Speaker 2: AMA