PANAJI
The Directorate of Health Services is all set to commence vaccination of children between the age group of 15 to 18 years in Goa from January 3, 2022, onwards at their respective schools.
State Immunization Officer Dr Rajendra Borkar informed that Goa has received around 74,200 doses of Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin to immunize children between the age of 15 and 18 years.
These will be used to administer the first dose of the Covid vaccine at around 529 schools. The state has a projected population of 72,000 children in this particular age bracket. “We will try to complete vaccinating all students within a week,” Dr Borkar stated.
In compliance with these directives, the Education Department through its zonal ADEIs issued the relevant orders to all schools under its gambit on Thursday. The Department has mapped out a schedule for the entire state and has allotted specific dates to each school well in advance. The SOPs and requirements have been communicated.
“We will be giving the vaccines only in the schools. But if any child has any comorbidities, they will be sent to the nearest health centre on a Wednesday for administration under supervision. The children will have to carry their Aadhaar card. We will have to think about how to handle those without identity proof,” Dr Borkar said.
From January 10 onwards, the DHS will start vaccinating healthcare workers, frontline workers and people above the age of 60 years suffering from comorbidities with the precautionary dose. It is not yet known whether these categories will be given the Covaxin or the Covishield vaccine.
Dr Borkar explained that the DHS is hurrying through the vaccination of children mainly to avoid overlapping with the precautionary dose categories and also to provide the children with some protection with the number of micron cases on the rise globally.
Speaking about the second dose for the children, Dr Borkar said, “We are writing to the Union ministry today to request more doses because once we vaccinate these children on January 3, we will have to give them the second dose after 28 days.”
He sought to clarify that school dropouts, migrant children and those who are not a part of the schooling system can also avail vaccination doses at the school or the nearest health centre on Wednesdays.
“We will see to it that every child in Goa in this age group is vaccinated,” he concluded.
