Only 22% frontline workers turn up for jab

BENGALURU: Vaccination for frontline workers has seen poor turnout across Karnataka, much like the lukewarm response from health staff. Only 22% (18,763) of 87,105 frontline workers across scheduled to get the jab on Monday turned up. Frontline staff, who include police and some categories of government officials, are reluctant to take the jab due to vaccine hesitancy and also because there is a sentiment that it might not be necessary as the number of new Covid infections has been low for some weeks, officials say.

Vaccination of health workers is ongoing simultaneously, with 3,93,439 (49%) of the registered 8,02,101 health staff getting their first shot of either Covaxin or Covishield between January 16 to February 8.
None of the state’s 30 districts crossed 50% coverage. On the higher side were districts such as Tumakuru (41%), Gadag (44%), and Chikmagaluru (43%). However, Bengaluru Urban saw 13%, Belagavi 19%, Ballari 21%, and districts such as Chamarajanagara, Dakshina Kannada, Davanagere and Mysuru had single-digit coverage at 5%, 6%, 8%, and 8% respectively. Kodagu district was yet to start vaccinating frontline workers.

The poor show among health workers was attributed to both vaccine hesitance and to glitches in the CoWIN app, but the latter issue had been sorted out on Monday when vaccination for frontline staff began. None of the police personnel who were to get vaccinated in Mysuru turned up for their dose. Just 29% of 2,906 people in Hassan district were given the jab at HIMS hospital. In Dharwad, 801 of 3,000 people were given their shot. Hubballi-Dharwad police commissioner Labhu Ram and several senior officers including the jail superintendent received the jab. 

Dr Sudhir Chandra Sooda, DHO, Udupi, pointed out that on day one, the district saw 132 (22%) of 593 beneficiaries getting the shot at four centres. In Kalaburagi district, of the 3,772 personnel of the police department who enrolled, 288 (7.64 %) got their first dose. Of the 3,141 revenue department employees, 128 (4.08%) were vaccinated and 26 (1.68%) of 1,544 municipal employees got the jab.

B’luru numbers low too
Frontline workers including BBMP officials, revenue and police officers, and pourakarmikas did not turn up in expected numbers due to fear of the vaccine and complacency regarding Covid-19.By 5.30 pm an abysmal, 13% of 13,311 frontline workers took the jab in Bengaluru Urban on Monday, apart from 25% of 9,961 health workers. A doctor from Singasandra primary health centre said only two people turned up by afternoon even though messages from Co-WIN were sent to several people in advance.

“The response to the vaccine is the same as before with not enough people coming forward to take the jab. There is not enough awareness even though we tried motivating workers by taking the vaccine ourselves,” said Dr Suresh Rudrappa, Medical Officer Health, in Malleswaram, who is responsible for five PHCs.