Head Teacher, medical officer breached protocol

Schools vaccination programme

…disciplinary actions recommend

An investigation into the recent incident where several pupils of the Lochaber Primary School in West Canje, Berbice, were given vaccines without the consent of their parents has revealed that both the school’s Head Teacher and the medical officer who administered the vaccines did not adhere to protocols set out by the Education and Health Ministries.
Head of the Regional Education Committee Zamal Hussain presented a reported to the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) late last week during which he stated that the acting Regional Education Officer Bhagmatie La Cruz had reported to the Education Committee that two children from Lochaber Primary School fell ill after they were given HPV vaccines.
This publication had reported last Sunday that the vaccines were administered on Tuesday and by the next day, several pupils had to be rushed to the New Amsterdam Hospital for treatment. While it is normal for persons to have some side effects to vaccines, the parents of the children had contended that they never gave permission for the vaccine to be administered.
Several parents reached out to the media after they were forced to rush their children to the hospital after they fell ill. It was after this occurred that they were informed of the vaccination programme.
Hussain told the RDC that the head of the Lochaber Primary breached the protocol whereby she did not ensure that the parental consent forms were signed by parents before the HPV vaccines were administered.
Hussain, who also heads the Regional Health Committee, said it was also found that the health worker who administered the vaccines also breached protocol by not seeing the medical cards of the pupils.
He said recommendations will be made as it relates to disciplinary actions for both public servants.
Director of the Regional Health Services, Jevaughn Stephens said that in collaboration with the Education Ministry, all Head Teachers were invited to a meeting at the Berbice High School, where they were told about the vaccines and given consent forms to give to the parents.