The Director of Public Health (DPH) and Preventive Medicine has instructed all Deputy Directors of Health Services to prepare a micro plan, at the level of health sub-centres (HSC), primary health centres (PHC) and districts, for carrying out vaccination against COVID-19 in the near future.
In a circular to all Deputy Directors of Health Services, the DPH said the Government of India was planning to introduce a vaccine against COVID-19 in the near future. In this connection, the Deputy Directors were instructed to advise the respective staff to prepare an HSC/PHC/district-level micro plan for vaccination.
According to official sources, any immunisation programme, usually, would have a micro plan, starting at the PHC level. The micro plan would contain the age and gender-wise distribution of population, requirement of vaccines and other logistics involved. Now, the DPH has instructed that such a micro plan be made for vaccination against COVID-19.
A public health official said work for preparing a micro plan had started. They also had a discussion with the Government of India on planning estimated requirements, storage, transport and human resources required.
Specific format
The micro plan should be prepared in a specified format, at the district-level, PHC-level and HSC-level health unit. It should include a list of Health Department staff, both government and private sector, staff of the Police Department, Revenue Department and local bodies.
The staff would include technical, non-technical and ministerial workers.
Ante-natal mothers, mediapersons, persons with diabetes, hypertension, cancer and other co-morbidities should be prepared. It also includes age-wise details of persons — 1-10 years, 11-19 years, 20-25 years, 26-35 years, 36-45 years, 46-60 years and above 60 years. The district-level consolidated micro plan should be sent to the Directorate on or before October 15.
Meanwhile, officials said the trial for the Oxford University COVID-19 vaccine, Covishield, was likely to start soon.
About 300 volunteers were being enrolled for the clinical trials of the vaccine in Chennai.