Pregnant women in Newcastle get the run-around on Pfizer

Every day at 11am, if NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian could tune into their homes, she would hear them cursing her and the system in place as she repeats the "get vaccinated" mantra.

In mid-July, Rachael Cullen was 19 weeks pregnant when started to try and find an appointment to get a dose of Pfizer.

A month earlier, on June 9, the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI), in conjunction with the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, issued a statement that recommended pregnant women be routinely offered Pfizer vaccines at any stage of pregnancy.

That made Ms Cullen a category 1b priority. But the message was not filtering through to GP clinics and vaccination hubs. The first GP she spoke to told her she could, and should have AstraZeneca. Her partner's GP said later the same day she needed Pfizer. The booking system led her to the Belmont vaccination hub which would not compute her request.

"I started calling around other medical centres to see if they had availability," she said. "Five GPs agreed to put me on their waitlists." Others were not taking names.

Then she tried contacting Hunter New England health. "I was calling them every day just to try and find out what was going on. Then I started emailing as well ... which was unsuccessful."

She tried Cessnock, Muswellbrook, and her home town of Mudgee where friends were able to access Pfizer at a walk-in clinic. She was told she risked getting a fine unless she made an appointment.

As recently as Monday of this week she had an email from the Belmont vaccination hub saying pregnant women were not a priority and the earliest appointment she could get was November 2. That was going to affect the timing of other vaccination she needed by 38 weeks for whooping cough and flu, so her midwife suggested she try turning up face to face.

"That was unsuccessful. I was humiliated by the fact I was trying to do that ... they just pointed me to the exit, laughing, saying "Are you kidding'."

About the same time, reports emerged about another Newcastle woman, also 24 weeks pregnant, who had contracted COVID-19 and was being cared for in the ICU at John Hunter Hospital.

That was the last straw, Ms Cullen said. That's when her mum got in touch with Newcastle Federal MP Sharon Claydon, who raised the issue in Parliament on Wednesday.

Less than 24 hours after Health Minister Greg Hunt took her details, she had her first dose. Since then, Ms Claydon has passed on the details of at least five other pregnant women to help secure them appointments, she said.

"I'm heartbroken by the number of pregnant women who have contacted my office frustrated and anxious because they can't get their vaccine appointment for months, sometimes not until after their due date," Ms Claydon said.

"These women are all desperately trying to the right thing to get vaccinated, but they can't. It's completely unacceptable that this enormous stress is being placed upon pregnant women at a time when they should expect our support."

Ms Cullen said she feels an enormous sense of relief at having had her first dose and knowing that offers her some protection.

"But I still feel so much frustration for all the other pregnant women who are in the exact same situation as me," she said.

"I've been lucky that Sharon used my case as an example but ... other women and people in general who are a priority, people who can't have AZ for medical reasons who are being pushed aside ... I feel like in Newcastle if you're a priority it's just who you know to get a Pfizer vaccination."

Another woman who has just entered her second trimester of pregnancy, said on Friday she too has had a very anxious time, and was waiting until October, until just this week snagging an earlier appointment. "My sister is the same, she's a breastfeeding mum and works at a supermarket and can't she get in either," she said.

Her husband, who is a frontline worker, will still be waiting for his first shot in October.

Our coverage of the health and safety aspects of this outbreak of COVID-19 in Newcastle and the Hunter, and lockdown rules and changes, is free for anyone to access. However, we depend on subscription revenue to support our journalism. If you are able, please subscribe here. If you are already a subscriber, thank you for your support. You can also sign up for our newsletters for regular updates.

IN THE NEWS:

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: