KATIE Roberts says she is feeling a bit more comfortable about the current omicron outbreak and the Hunter's rising case numbers now that her two children had received their first vaccination.
Children aged between five and 11 became eligible for their first jabs on Monday, a date which health authorities and politicians have been advertising for weeks as being central to their plan to 'ride the wave'.
Her daughters Lucy, aged 7, and Violent, aged 5, were "pretty good with needles", Ms Roberts said.
There had been no debate in her household about whether or not to have the children vaccinated.
"We are both pro-vaccination, my husband and I, and we wanted the kids to get vaccinated as soon as possible, especially with going back to school," she said.
"We've had some family members get COVID, but they've been fine, thankfully, they've both recovered. We've had lots of alerts on our phones since just before Christmas. It's certainly around and I think it's just a matter of time, really, for most of us before we end up with it."
Dr Ben Seckold, based at Hamilton Doctors where the girls got their jab, said demand for kids' vaccinations had risen dramatically in the last few weeks.
"We are only getting 100 kids vaccines per week at the moment so demand far exceeds supply," Dr Seckold said. "We are booked out for at least the next 4-6 weeks."
Dr Seckold said most parents he had dealt with had been receptive to the idea of vaccinating their children.
"Occasionally a parent will be reluctant given that it is rare for children to get a severe illness, however vaccinating children should be encouraged to help reduce transmission and protect the vulnerable people in our community," he said.
NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet said his pre-school aged daughter had also received her first shot and, unlike Lucy and Violent, who didn't get "too stressed" about it, she screamed the clinic down.
"For parents, I know it can be daunting, getting your children vaccinated," he said.
