VACCINATION: HEALTH WORKERS BLAME POOR IMPLEMENTATION FOR LOW TURNOUT

All DMs and CMOs directed to complete the registration of the beneficiaries on the portal in advance

LUCKNOW : Even as the state health and family welfare department expressed concern over less than expected turnout (27.51%) of health workers in the mop up Covid vaccination round held on Monday, the latter blamed the department for the poor response.

A former president of IMA, Lucknow chapter, Dr PK Gupta said due to poor implementation of Covid vaccination sessions across the state, a large number of doctors who had applied for vaccination were deprived of the jab. The department had set the target to inoculate 2,53,538 doctors and para medical staff but the details of the beneficiaries were not uploaded on the CO-WIN portal and majority of those whose names were uploaded did not receive message about the vaccination centres and time.

LUCKNOW: Even as the state health and family welfare department expressed concern over less than expected turnout (27.51%) of health workers in the mop up Covid vaccination round held on Monday, the latter blamed the department for the poor response.

A former president of Indian Medical Association (IMA), Lucknow chapter, Dr PK Gupta said due to poor implementation of Covid vaccination sessions across the state, a large number of doctors who had applied for vaccination with the district health department were deprived of the jab.

The health and family welfare department had set the target to inoculate 2,53,538 doctors and para medical staff but the details of the beneficiaries were not uploaded on the CO-WIN portal and majority of those whose names were uploaded did not receive message about the vaccination centres and time.

Several doctors contacted the helpline launched by the health department and called the district officials but there was no response, he said.

“If the district officials are facing technical glitches in uploading the names of beneficiaries on the portal then they should change the vaccination strategy. Instead of sending messages to the beneficiaries, the department should make vaccination open for health workers. The names of health workers who visit the centre for vaccination should be uploaded on the portal,” he said.

A private medical practitioner Dr Vijay Prakash said he had sent the details to the district officials a fortnight back but there was no response. “I made several calls and even sent message via e-mail but there was no message or information about the vaccination,” he said.

Another private medical practitioner Dr AK Singh said there was no doubt or concern among

the health workers regarding the Covid vaccine. Already nine rounds of vaccination had been organized across the state and

most of the beneficiaries were safe and healthy. The health workers fought the Covid pandemic with conviction and determination

and all wished to get vaccinated. The onus was on the health department to streamline the system, he said.

Chief secretary RK Tiwari has also expressed concern over the poor vaccination in several districts.

In a meeting held on Monday, he had directed the health and family welfare department officers to upload the names of beneficiaries on the portal in advance. The department should inform the beneficiaries three days in advance about visit to the vaccination centre, he said.

The health and family welfare department should launch awareness campaign across the state to enlighten the people about the utility of the Covid vaccine.

They should tell the beneficiaries that the vaccine was safe and strengthened immunity in the human body to fight the corona virus infection, he said.

A health department officer said all the district magistrates and chief medical officers had been directed to complete the registration of the beneficiaries on the portal in advance.

The department was working to increase the turnout of the beneficiaries in the next vaccination round to be held on Thursday, he said.