As India gears up for vaccination drive, around 100 people are expected to get the anti-COVID-19 shots at each site per day, said the government.
As per the standard operating procedure (SOP) issued by the health ministry to all states and union territories, over 100 people should be vaccinated per day at a site and if sufficient resources are available, then, up to 200 people can be vaccinated, reported India Today.
It also stated that if in any case, more than 200 people are being vaccinated within a session, then, a whole team of 5 people will have to be deployed separately (one vaccine officer and 4 vaccination officers).
Vaccination centre is expected to have three rooms or areas including the waiting room, vaccination room and observation room.
The health ministry has planned to vaccinate the health care workers first including front-line workers and those aged above 50 years. Followed by this, people below 50 years of age who are suffering from a chronic critical illness will be vaccinated. Based on the voter list prepared in the Lok Sabha and assembly elections, people above 50 years of age will be identified.
After this, the entire population will be vaccinated, whenever the COVID-19 vaccine is ready for the public use, based on the spread and availability of this disease.
‘The beneficiaries will be tracked through a digital platform called Co-WIN. All information on this platform will be updated in real-time,’ the draft SOP stated.
Meanwhile, the government has lined up cold storage facilities with temperatures between 2-8 degrees Celsius (36 to 48-degree Fahrenheit), said VK Paul, who heads the group of experts on vaccine administration for COVID-19.
Paul said these preparations meet the requirements of what he said were the four emerging candidates in the race for India’s vaccine.
‘The four that I can see, including Serum, Bharat, Zydus, and Sputnik need normal cold chain. I see no problem for these vaccines,’ VK Paul said.
Serum Institute of India, the world’s largest vaccine maker, is already mass producing and stockpiling AstraZeneca’s Covishield shot, while Indian biotech players Bharat Biotech and Zydus Cadila are developing their own vaccine candidates.
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