Good morning, I am Dr Lucas De Toca and I lead the rollout of the vaccine through GPs, Aboriginal health services and pharmacies for the Australian Government. Today we are going to be answering some of the most commonly asked questions you have asked in our social media channels. As usual I am joined by Linda, who is going to be doing Auslan interpreting. We’re on the land of the Ngunnawal people, so Dhawra nhuna, dhawra Ngunawal. Yanggu gulanyin ngalawiri, dhunayi, Ngunawal dhawra. Wanggarralijinyin mariny balan bugarabang. I also acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the lands where you may be watching from. Today we’re going to talk about a third dose for immunocompromised people, we’re going to talk about how does the vaccine actually protect from severe illness, and we’re going to talk about how people who are COVID positive get treated and what advice they get. Before starting, I want to shout out the thousands of people across Australia that are still coming to get tested. It’s really important that we continue to get tested, even if we have the mildest of symptoms, because that is the only way to get on top of the virus, especially as parts of the country are commencing to open up like NSW this week. Congratulations to everyone in Sydney who is enjoying expanded freedoms now that they have opened up.
First, let’s talk about what the advice that was published last week about people getting a third dose if you are immunocompromised. What does that mean and why is that necessary?
