Portugal Excels in Drive To Vaccinate Its Population
Portugal’s health care system was on the verge of collapse. Hospitals in the capital, Lisbon, were overflowing and the authorities were asking people to treat themselves at home. In the last week of January, nearly 2,000 people died as the coronavirus spread.
The country’s vaccine program was in a shambles, so the government turned to Vice Admiral Henrique Gouveia e Melo, a former submarine squadron commander. Eight months later, Portugal is among the world’s leaders in vaccinations, with roughly 86 percent of its population of 10.3 million fully vaccinated. About 98 percent of all of those eligible for vaccines have been fully vaccinated, Admiral Gouveia e Melo said.
“We believe we have reached the point of group protection and nearly herd immunity,” he said. “Things look very good.”
On October 1, Portugal ended nearly all of its restrictions. There has been a sharp drop in new cases, to about 650 a day, and vanishingly few deaths.
Many Western nations with abundant vaccine supplies have seen inoculation rates plateau, with over 20 percent of their populations still unprotected. So some are looking to Portugal for insights.
Portugal’s vaccination drive has succeeded even after encountering many of the same hurdles that caused others to flounder. The same misinformation has filled the social media accounts of the Portuguese. According to polls, there was widespread doubt when the vaccines first arrived.
With a background working on logistical challenges in the military, Admiral Gouveia e Melo was named in February to lead the vaccination task force. He wore his combat uniform in his public appearances as he sought to essentially draft the nation into one collective pandemic-fighting force.
“The first thing is to make this thing a war,” Admiral Gouveia e Melo said, recalling how he approached the job. He said it was critical that he was seen as detached from politics. He assembled a team led by elite military personnel — mathematicians, doctors and strategic experts. Asked what other countries can do to bolster their own efforts, he offered this advice: “They need to find people who are not politicians.”
Still, as the effort moved onto younger age groups, there were signs of resistance. In July, protesters were blocking a vaccination center in Lisbon, so Admiral Gouveia e Melo went there.
“I went through these crazy people,”
An admiral takes politics out of a health campaign.
he said. “They started to call me ‘murderer, murderer.’ ” As the television cameras rolled, he stood his ground.
Not everybody welcomed his approach. “We don’t really have a culture of questioning authorities,” said Laura Sanches, a clinical psychologist who has criticized the drive as too militaristic.
Still, the campaign made progress. “In the beginning, we had some 40 percent who were unsure,” the admiral said. Now, only 2.2 percent do not want the vaccine.
As he stepped down from the task force, the admiral said he felt the country was on a good course. But he cautioned that vigilance would remain essential to ensuring that this war was won.