Frontline workers to get vaccine jabs from Feb 5

LUCKNOW : Frontline workers will start getting the jabs from February 5, in the sixth round of the Covid vaccination drive. So far, the department of home affairs has forwarded names of 44,000 of them to the health department.

“Apart from the 44,000 names, we have also got 10,328 names from the housing department,” said Dr MK Singh, in-charge of vaccination in Lucknow.

Police personnel, paramilitary forces, home guards, panchayati raj, sanitisation workers, and others figure on the list of frontline workers. The department of panchayati raj is yet to submit its list, said officials.

“In the fifth round of vaccination for health wokers on February 4, 120 vaccination session sites/booths will be vaccinating beneficiaries. We are making all efforts to increase vaccination percentage,” said Singh.

Experts said the vaccination percentage could be increased if a list of beneficiaries for Covid vaccination is worked upon in advance. Along with a list of beneficiaries to be vaccinated on February 4, a list of beneficiaries to be covered on February 5 should be made available to the vaccinating teams, they said.

“A list in advance is one that has names of beneficiaries enrolled for later days.

It can be used if beneficiaries listed for any vaccination day do not turn up,” said Dr PK Gupta, former president, IMA, Lucknow. Doctors said another option could be to keep one hour on each vaccination day for beneficiaries who missed their dose.

“In this one hour, anyone who did not turn up for vaccination, should be allowed to take the vaccination, thereby the need to hold a mop-up round for one full day can be avoided,” said Dr Abhishek Shukla, secretary general, Association of International Doctors.