Drive-through testing, vaccination clinic to end

BASS Coast Health (BCH) will close its COVID testing drive-through and Community Vaccination Clinic in response to decreasing community demand.
The last day of the Community Vaccination Clinic at Wonthaggi Town Hall will be Monday, May 16. BCH personnel will finish staffing the clinic this Saturday, May 7, with staff from Latrobe Regional Hospital providing walk-in vaccinations on Monday, May 9, from 10.30am to 3.30pm and Monday, May 16, from 10am to 12pm (closed all other days).
COVID testing at the former McBride Campus of Wonthaggi Secondary College will end at 1pm Saturday, May 14.
BCH CEO Jan Child said the time is right and it is now time for the health service to focus its resources on core services.
“We are speaking with all individual staff members and linking them to opportunities within Bass Coast Health. These excellent staff are our most valuable asset and we hope many of them will stay with us in other roles,” she said.
According to BCH, the following arrangements that will apply to support vaccination and testing locally:
Vaccinations
• COVID vaccinations will continue to be available at GP clinics, six Gippsland Respiratory Clinics and participating pharmacies by appointment.
• The Gippsland Region Public Health Unit will continue to ensure the community has access to COVID vaccinations. The mobile COVID vaccination bus, Chitty Chitty Jab Jab, will also provide outreach vaccination opportunities throughout the Gippsland region.
Testing
• Wonthaggi Medical Group have run their Respiratory Clinic since the beginning of the pandemic and will continue to provide symptomatic testing and treatment at their clinic where appointments are available via their website or on 0429 036 568
• COVID RAT tests will be available from Wonthaggi Hospital from Monday, May 16, with the details still to be confirmed
• RAT tests are also available at most pharmacists (free for pensioners), at schools for students, as well as select service stations and supermarkets
• RAT tests will continue to be available via the Annex to the Phillip Island Health Hub 9:30am – 11:30am, Mondays and Thursdays.