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9 JUNE, 2021
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Vaccination hub plan By Alesha Capone
A moment in history A photo of eight-year-old Zach and his dog waiting for the first visitors to arrive at their family home after a stage three COVID-19 lockdown last year tells a powerful story. Zach’s mother Cher Dooling captured the image of her son and the family’s adopted British bulldog, Daisy, on May 16, 2020. Ms Dooling has submitted the photo to a project run by Wyndham council’s libraries, to collect community stories about the effects of COVID-19 on everyday life. The stories will be preserved on the Wyndham History website and in the library’s collections for future generations. Ms Dooling said she took the picture of Zach and Daisy before the arrival of her cousin from Narre Warren, who had a baby last February. “Zach loved interacting with the three-month-old baby, holding him, feeding him, brushing his hair – something very special as we are a small family,” she said. Ms Dooling said Zach and Daisy are “inseparable”. “I daresay Daisy is the reason Zach was able to cope during lockdown,” she said. “That is the reason why I sent through the featured photo. “It tells a much bigger story about a love and friendship between a little boy and his beloved companion.” Ms Dooling encouraged other residents to make a submission to the Our Wyndham COVID-19 Stories project, either a photo, a one-minute audio recording or a 500-word letter to future generations. “This is such a unique time in history,” she said. Details: www.wyndham.vic.gov.au/ history-now-covid-19-wyndham
(Supplied)
Wyndham council is working with health organisations to establish a “high-volume” COVID-19 vaccination hub. A council spokesperson said Wyndham was working closely with Western Health, the Department of Health, GPs and other partner agencies to establish a large site where the community can be vaccinated. “This work is progressing, and we hope to have a high-volume vaccination site up and running very soon,” the spokesperson said. Separately, general practitioners from MyClinic Werribee Village conducted a trial mass vaccination clinic at the Encore Events Centre last Thursday – 107 people were vaccinated within two hours. MyClinic’s Dr Joe Garra said they were hoping to run another vaccination clinic soon. He said large sites such as Encore gave patients more space to complete the required 15 minute wait after receiving a jab, making mass clinics a “promising future model”. Plans are also shaping up for a 500-bed quarantine facility to be constructed near Avalon airport. The Prime Minister last week gave acting premier James Merlino a memorandum of understanding to confirm support for the quarantine centre, which is expected to cost about $200 million. In a Facebook post, Wyndham councillor Mia Shaw said the benefits of the facility would include job opportunities for locals. “However, Wyndham needs to work through details with authorities to ensure our residents are protected from any risk of transmission from this facility,” the post read. Meanwhile, Wyndham council has called on state and federal governments to give businesses more certainty about future lockdown support. “Business owners can’t be left guessing every time about if, when and how much support they will receive,” Cr Shaw said. “Lockdowns was an effective strategy in 2020 but 12 months on we need different strategies to deal with COVID outbreaks.” Mayor Adele Hegedich said the council was “doing everything we can to support our local economy” including a $5 million business support package and a Small Business Entrepreneurship and Innovation Fund.
Alesha Capone
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