Wollongong's mass vaccination hub will open on Monday, an Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District spokesperson has confirmed.
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If the supply of vaccine is sufficient, the hub has the capacity to vaccinate 2500 people a day - possibly more, executive director of the ISLHD Caroline Langston said.
Ms Langstone said the region has one of the highest rates of vaccination uptake in the state, and hopes the new facility will make the process more accessible and efficient for residents.
"I would encourage people not to wait to book in," she said.
"We have appointments for the Astra-Zeneca vaccine available today and tomorrow; we know the pandemic is significant in Sydney, and we're not that far away."
The Health District will also establish an Astra-Zeneca vaccine centre at Shellharbour next week.
The Wollongong and Shellharbour City Centre COVID-19 vaccination clinics will transition across to the Mass Vaccination Centre from Monday.
People already booked to be vaccinated at the Wollongong Hospital and Shellharbour vaccination clinics will this week receive updated information about their appointment at the new Centre.
Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District (ISLHD) Chief Executive, Margot Mains praised the team of staff and contractors responsible for turning the former David Jones building in the mall into the region's first mass COVID-19 vaccination centre.
"The work the team has delivered on the new centre is outstanding, especially in such a short amount of time and with the additional requirements around COVID safety," Ms Mains said.
The Local Health District encourages people to book a vaccine appointment via the Australian Government eligibility checker which shows available appointments at NSW Health vaccination centres as well as GPs and pharmacies.
"If there are no available bookings at a location near you soon, please continue to visit the eligibility checker as more vaccination appointments become available," a spokesperson said.
Under the Public Health Order, construction of the centre was permitted to continue over the past few weeks, as it is urgently required by NSW Health in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
See our full COVID-19 coverage here.
If you're interested in this story about the COVID vaccination centre you might want to know more about how rapid antigen tests are being used to deliver faster COVID tests. Watch our video below.
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