COVID-19 vaccination: What is a dry run?

A dry run for COVID-19 vaccination was conducted by all state and union territory administrations on Saturday. The exercise includes necessary data entry in Co-WIN, an online platform for monitoring of vaccine delivery, testing receipt and allocation, deployment of team members, mock drill of session sites with test beneficiaries, the Union Health Ministry had earlier said.

A dry run is when the link between planning and implementation is tested in order to plug any gaps. A dry run is crucial in multiple industries, but gains even more importance due to the scale at which the vaccine will need to be administered.

Here, the logistics will be tested from start to finish. Dummy vaccines will be transported from the cold chain plant where it is kept. Storage is crucial to keep vaccines viable as the temperature of the vaccine is controlled.

At the vaccination centre, there will be three rooms — registration, vaccination and observation for smooth administration.

In addition to this, vaccination officers, administrators and health workers are trained. They are also trained to use the Co-WIN app. Co-WIN, or the COVID-19 Vaccine Intelligence Network is an app for the entire vaccination process, including who gets the vaccine and follow up. It is also where people can register for a vaccine.

On the app, those in charge will have to register vaccine samples, people who received the dose and other aspects.

The dry run, which is a mock drill, sees the medical officer administering a dummy vaccine to a candidate, and will be used to check logistical requirements, internet connectivity, power supply, and safety norms.

On the logistical side, the vaccine’s temperature from the cold storage point to the centre will have to be tracked, SMSes will be sent to the beneficiaries with the name of the person administering the vaccine and the time at which it will be done, and if there are any adverse effects after the vaccine administered, it will be managed through a central server.

"The objective of the dry run for COVID-19 vaccine introduction is to assess operational feasibility in the use of Co-WIN application in field environment, to test the linkages between planning and implementation and to identify the challenges and guide way forward prior to actual implementation. This is also expected to give confidence to programme managers at various levels," the health ministry had earlier said.

The central government has also asked all states and UTs to ensure effective preparedness for the COVID-19 vaccine roll-out.