Healthcare workers, who took the first dose of COVID-19 vaccine 28 days ago, got the booster shot here on Monday.
Both vaccines — Covishield and Covaxin — being used in the exercise require a two-dose schedule to be administered four weeks apart.
The vaccination of healthcare workers started on January 16 and frontline workers from the first week of February. “On the first day, only about eight doctors took the vaccine at our session site. However, there were many on the second day. Today, they have all come to get the booster shot,” K. Vanitha, Dean, Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Government Hospital, said.
Doctors from the Indian Medical Association-Tiruchi branch, who took the first dose along with Health Secretary J. Radhakrishnan, also took the booster dose on Monday.
At Tiruchi MGMGH, 90% of healthcare workers who took the vaccine 28 days ago had been inoculated, they said. “Around 60 of them took it on the first two days. So far, we have inoculated at least 50. The remaining will come in the next couple of days,” a senior nurse said.
All healthcare workers who completed the two-dose course were given a card with their name, age and other details to identify completion of their vaccination for COVID-19.
Dr. Vanitha urged healthcare workers to take the second dose. “It is important to finish the course of any vaccine. Vaccination is the only way to beat COVID-19,” she said.
Frontline workers, including police personnel, had begun actively participating in the drive. At least 50 police personnel were given the vaccine per day, she added.
Meanwhile, the session site at Tiruchi MGMGH was shifted to the ground floor of the super-speciality block this week. “What was being used as a waiting room for COVID-19 patients is now a vaccination session site. It was constructed as an out-patient observation room, but is now being used for this purpose,” a nurse said.