KEY Hunter healthcare workers will be the first in line to receive the COVID-19 vaccine when the John Hunter Hospital vaccination hub becomes operational on Monday.
The Newcastle Herald understands that for at least the next six weeks - from Monday to Friday - the hub will distribute the Pfizer vaccine out of the hospital's library.
The region's health workers have been told priority would be given to staff in the COVID clinics, COVID wards and COVID testing centres, as well as immunisation staff.
Staff working in emergency departments, in ambulance and patient transport, pathology labs and critical care wards throughout the Hunter New England district would also be eligible to receive the vaccine in the first phase of the local rollout.
Some staff members had already travelled to Sydney's Liverpool Hospital for their vaccinations.
The Herald understands there will be six "vaccination stations" at the John Hunter Hospital hub, and that the vaccination of staff will be staggered to minimise the extra traffic on the site.
Health employees identified as "category 1a staff" have begun to be approached by their managers to register for an appointment at the hub. They will need to receive two injections of the vaccine, three weeks apart.
After their vaccine, health care workers will have to wait 15-to-30 minutes in an observation area before they can return to work.
A staff member at the John Hunter Hospital told the Herald that while getting the vaccine was not mandatory, it was encouraged, and most of their colleagues were planning to have it as soon as they had the opportunity.
The staffer said a lot of people were keen for the protection of the COVID-19 vaccine, but some also had concerns it could affect which roles they could do at the hospital in future if they didn't get it.
Those planning a pregnancy, or already pregnant, were "understandably" more hesitant to get the jab.
"But to be completely honest, I think the nurses are talking more about MAFS [TV show, Married at First Sight] than the vaccine at the moment," the staff member joked. "They aren't too worried about it."
Employees not working at John Hunter Hospital were encouraged to carpool where possible, and staff had been urged to make their managers aware of their vaccine appointments to ensure patient care was not affected by their absence.
The vaccine will also be distributed from the John Hunter Hospital hub to other rural and regional satellite sites within Hunter New England Health. These include Wallsend, Denman, Taree, Tamworth, Merriwa, Armidale, and Werris Creek. Others were planned for Barraba, Bingara, Boggabri, Guyra, Walcha and Warialda.
