New Delhi: Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan today chaired a high-level meeting across the country on January 2, 2021 (Saturday) to review the preparations made at the venues for the Covid-19 vaccination trial run.
Senior officials of the ministry told the minister about the various reforms that have been taken to make Saturday’s nationwide dry run free of any disturbances. For example, there has been an increase in the number of telephone operators who answer all the questions of teams conducting dry runs on the ground, a task force has been constituted at the block level for physical inspection of the assembly sites and All personnel have also been made aware of the purpose of disseminating commonly asked questions (FAQs), among other issues.
Dr. Harsh Vardhan appealed to all officers to ensure that the vaccination site and the officer-in-charge follow the detailed checklist. Apart from this, the standard operating procedure (SOP) prepared by the Union Health Ministry for vaccination should also be followed. The SOP has also been shared with the States and Union Territories for guidance in operating the dry run. The Union Health Minister emphasized that better coordination between the administration and medical authorities is needed to set the dry run as an example, enabling the subsequent mass vaccination campaign.
He gave this event equal importance to public participation in elections. Dr. Harsh Vardhan further said, “Let us try to apply this as a real practice with a focus on its finer details.” Correct coordination will go a long way to build mutual understanding so that the forthcoming vaccination campaign can proceed without any disturbances. ‘
Referring to the 1994 Pulse Polio Campaign in Delhi, Dr. Harsh Vardhan said that since vaccination work is inextricably dependent on mutual participation of people, it is necessary for the concerned stakeholders, NGOs, civil society organizations (CSOs) and others to come together Is required. Apart from this, he also emphasized the need for adequate security arrangements during the transportation of assembly sites, cold chain points and vaccines.
Dr. Harsh Vardhan also spoke to Delhi officials. These officers included Secretary (Health) Shri Amit Singla along with the District Magistrates and District Defense Officers of Shahdara, Central Delhi and South-West Delhi. Three districts of Delhi are located in these districts. These three sites are – Guru Tegh Bahadur Hospital (Shahadra), Urban Primary Health Care (Daryaganj) and Venkateswara Hospital (Dwarka).
These officials said that the team formed for this campaign has been given adequate training. In addition, they will monitor all aspects of the process themselves to identify deficiencies and report back to it. At the same time, the officials praised the Union Minister for the preparations made for the dry run. These preparations include the construction of the assembly site, the process of submitting and updating the details, uploading it to the Co-Win application, training of personnel involved in vaccination, preparation of any adverse event after vaccination (AEFI), cold chain management, Security of assembly sites and vaccine storage sites, etc.
He expressed confidence in his preparations for mock drill and assured the Union Minister that he was fully prepared for the actual practice of vaccination of identified beneficiaries.
Dr. Harshvardhan also briefed the officials about the status of the two top vaccine candidates whose details are being closely monitored by the Subject Expert Committee of the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI). He praised the efforts of the Front Front personnel and expressed his condolences to the Corona warriors who sacrificed their lives in an attempt to save the lives of others.
The meeting was also attended by the Union Health Secretary, Mr. Rajesh Bhushan, Additional Secretary and Managing Director of the National Health Mission, Mrs. Vandana Gurnani, Additional Secretary (Health) Dr. Manohar Agnani, Joint Secretary Mr. Luv Agarwal and other senior officials of the Ministry.