Viviana and Christopher
Content Warning: These stories are about violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation and may include references to suicide or self-harming behaviours. They may contain graphic descriptions and strong language and may be distressing. Some narratives may be about First Nations people who have passed away. If you need support, please see Contact & support.
Viviana is in the COVID-19 high risk group and in early 2021 her father and legal guardian, Christopher, wanted to make sure she was vaccinated with the recommended Pfizer vaccine as soon as possible.
Viviana, in her late 40s, lives in a group home and needs 24-hour-a-day support for her physical and intellectual disabilities. Christopher signed vaccination consent forms for Viviana in March 2021, but told the Royal Commission that Viviana still had not been vaccinated nearly three months later.
‘[Viviana] has not been given any sort of priority access to protection from this potentially fatal virus. Several attempts to book a COVID vaccination for Viviana online failed after the assessment deemed that she did not qualify under the present circumstances despite being assessed as 1A.’
Christopher said he had been unable to find out when the vaccine would become available for his daughter and the three other residents in her group home. The group home had no information about when or how the vaccine would be administered, despite residents being in group 1A and highly vulnerable.
‘We are unaware that any of Viviana’s carers have received vaccination for COVID-19, and these carers change from time to time, and often do other work as well, thus increasing the risk.
‘I hope that the thousands of disabled citizens in care will be afforded the respect and dignity they deserve in management of the COVID-19 vaccination program in the immediate future.’
Disclaimer: This is the story of a person who shared their personal experience with the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability through a submission or private session. The names in this story are pseudonyms. The person who shared this experience was not a witness and their account is not evidence. They did not take an oath or affirmation before providing the story. Nothing in this story constitutes a finding of the Royal Commission. Any views expressed are those of the person who shared their experience, not of the Royal Commission.