COVID-19: Odisha to issue certificate to vaccine receivers

BHUBANESWAR: With the State getting infrastructure and facilities ready for rolling out the Covid-19 vaccination drive, healthcare workers, who would first get the jab as it is available, will be issued with a certificate.

Member convenor of the State task force and Director (Family Welfare) Dr Bijay Kumar Panigrahi said Odisha is ready for the drive expected early next year. Two doses of injectable vaccine will be administered as per the prescribed duration. As many as 3.2 lakh HCWs and ICDS functionaries will be vaccinated in the first phase in the State.

“Once the vaccination is completed, the receiver will be issued with a certificate, which will be useful during travel and other documentation purposes with regard to Covid vaccine. For other vaccines, the documentation is done in a card issued to beneficiaries,” he said.

The HCWs would be vaccinated at fixed session sites. All arrangements for maintaining the cold chain have been made for the biggest vaccination campaign. The State has 1,222 cold chain points with 1,796 ice-lined refrigerators and 1,771 deep freezers.

Along with one State vaccine store, there are nine regional stores and 32 district stores from where vaccines will be transported to distribution points through ice-lined refrigerators.  As directed by the Centre, the Health and Family Welfare department has planned to vaccinate all frontline health workers from both government and private settings with each session having 100 beneficiaries.

Although the schedule of the vaccination campaign is yet to be announced, the drive will be undertaken as per the universal immunisation programme. A total 8,267 vaccinators are ready for the drive planned to be conducted at 29,276 session sites.

“The beneficiary database has been uploaded in the Covid Vaccine Intelligence Network (Co-WIN) system for real time tracking. Only pre-registered beneficiaries will be vaccinated. There will be a five-member team, including one to verify the database with the beneficiary and the vaccinator. Each site will have three rooms for waiting, vaccination and observation. Once vaccinated, the beneficiary will be kept in observation for 30 minutes,” Panigrahi said.      

Though no formal intimation has been received for second phase vaccination, he said frontline workers like policemen, armed forces, postal and railway staff will be included and in the third phase, people above 50 years and those with comorbidities will be taken into consideration.

The latest electoral roll for Lok Sabha and Legislative Assembly elections will be used to identify people aged 50 years or above.