Page 23 - Tropic Magazine Issue 32

TROPIC • HEALTH

Life after

lockdowns

Q&A
As Australian vaccination
rates rise, our country’s
leaders continue to plan for
lifting restrictions and border What about other pockets of the the bed numbers. Health systems need
closures. Tropic asked James population whose vaccination rates to consider what we are going to do
don’t match those of the
about that. Lockdown is one answer, or
Cook University epidemiologist, Australian average? do we make tough decisions about who
Professor Emma McBryde, In Cairns, the rates of Indigenous goes to hospital and under
what we can expect in a vaccinations are very, very low and that’s what circumstances?
post-lockdown era. very concerning. People who have chosen not to be
It’s similar with communities who are
vaccinated should make an advanced
new Australians and don’t necessarily health directive and decide whether they
What concerns are there for children speak English and have sources of want to go into intensive care and be
under 12 for whom a vaccine hasn’t yet information that aren’t mainstream. intubated. They need to make it very clear
been approved? There’s also a large number of people to their loved ones either way.
They are a very low risk group. Their risk aged over 70 who have decided not to
of getting severe disease or dying is in the get vaccinated. It’s inevitable that some When will booster vaccinations
order of one per 100,000 cases compared of them will die. Hospitalisations and be required?
with the over 70s which is one in 20. deaths are almost exclusively in people The data’s still coming in. It looks as
That’s not to say we shouldn’t offer who are not vaccinated. though immunity for acquiring infection
additional protections, like parents and wanes but the immunity for preventing
teachers getting vaccinated, but the issue Will the public hospital system cope? serious disease is holding up.
is if we vaccinate everyone other than It is likely if we open up at 70 per cent For at least six months we’ve got very
children, we can virtually achieve herd vaccination rate there will be a surge in good immunity with either AstraZeneca
immunity and we’re left with a disease cases. Even with vaccinations, there will or Pfizer. We may well need boosters
that is of the same magnitude as the be a level of hospitalisation and people early next year.
influenza virus. dying that will be of great burden on the
The idea of locking down because of health system. The hospitals have had
children would cause far more harm 18 to 20 months to plan for this, but we MORE: tropicnow.com.au
that benefit. haven’t been able to multiply

wellbeing
Supporting mental wellbeing

If you or a loved one are struggling with mental health, the
team at The Cairns Clinic provides holistic care for depression,
anxiety, trauma and more.
Let The Cairns Clinic help you find a better way forward, with
evidence-based psychiatric and psychological treatment. We’re
part of Ramsay Mental Health, with 23 clinics across Australia.

Learn more online at
ramsaymentalhealth.com.au/cairns T 4050 7000

23 • tropicnow.com.au