Alam Yoosuff advises residents get second dose of AstraZeneca COVID vaccine

Finley general practitioner Alam Yoosuff, who sits on the board of Murrumbidgee Primary Health Network and Murrumbidgee Local Health District as well as being the primary health director of MLHD, said international data showed it was extremely rare for anyone to develop blood clots from the first vaccine.

But it is even rarer to get it after your second dose.

Dr Yoosuff said the 42.3 million doses of AstraZeneca delivered in the UK had resulted in just 390 cases of Vaccine-induced Thrombotic Thrombocytopenia.

Of which 363 presented after the first dose compared to just 27 after the second dose.

"My message for anyone in this country is if you are offered a vaccine and if you're eligible, get it," he said.

"Anyone who had no trouble with their first dose of AstraZeneca, please go ahead and get the second dose."

Dr Yoosuff said Australian authorities had altered the age advice surrounding the AstraZeneca vaccine "out of an abundance of caution".

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Dr Yoosuff said Australian authorities had altered the age advice surrounding the AstraZeneca vaccine "out of an abundance of caution".

He said although the changing advice from ATAGI and governments could be challenging, it was also essential.

"Change is challenging always...but changing with evidence is the safest thing to do," he said.

"If we don't change with what we know, it means we are trying to be static when things are changing, and that is dangerous."

Dr Yoosuff said the change in advice might slow the pace of the rollout, but he believes the nation is on track to be significantly vaccinated in the beginning of 2022.

"Within first two to three months of 2022, if 80 per cent of people are vaccinated that will make big difference," he said.

Dr Yoosuff said vitally, despite the emergence of different kappa and delta variants of COVID, international investigations are yet to uncover a variant which is resistant to the currently available vaccines.