MARGAO
Even as confusion prevails over anti-Covid vaccination for citizens above 18 years of age from May 1, with the procurement of vaccines yet to fructify in the State, a large number of citizens above the age of 60, both men and women, made a beeline for a vaccination jab at the TB hospital on Thursday.’
The senior citizens made a rush for the anti-Covid vaccination jab, apparently on two counts, one that the city is witnessing a continuous spike in Coronavirus cases and secondly, they were under the impression that walk-in vaccination drive at the centre will stop from May with the government introducing on-line registrations for vaccination jabs.
The TB Hospital and the Margao Urban Health centre registered around 800 beneficiaries of anti-Covid vaccination on Thursday, with the TB hospital staff administering the jabs on around 500 persons, around 498 to be precise.
A glance at the statistics of the vaccination at the TB hospital shows that of the 498 persons who received the jab, around 113 persons, males (54) and 59 females received fell in the category of 60-plus citizens. Similarly, anther 103 60-plus citizens came to the vaccination centre for the second dose.
The rest of the beneficiaries fell in the age group of 45-59 years.
Doctors were surprised to find 60-plus of age citizens making a rush for the vaccine now when the facility was opened for them for more than a month now. “There were two factors behind the rush of the senior citizens, one, the continuous spike in Covid cases and other for the fear that walk-in vaccination programme may come to a stop from May 1 after the registrations go on-line”, remarked a doctor.
Urban and Primary Health officials in private said that the government has told them to continue with the ongoing walk-in vaccination drive till further orders. In fact, a health official pointed out that a senior official told the health officers that the vaccination for adults scheduled from May 1 may be postponed and that the ongoing exercise may continue till further orders.
A senior health official told The Goan that though the Goa government has placed orders for anti-Covid vaccines in order to vaccinate the 18-above population via on-line registrations, the government is yet to receive vaccine doses till date. “The walk-in vaccination for persons above 45 will continue at the health and vaccination centres. There’s no change in the policy for the moment”, the official asserted.
