Over 1000 vaccinated at COVID-19 vaccine ‘drive thru’ at National Stadium

The first COVID-19 vaccination “drive thru”, organised by the Health Ministry, on Saturday attracted over 1000 persons, who turned up to receive either their first or second dose.
At the Guyana National Stadium, Providence, vehicles met a smooth process, where three different teams administered the COVID-19 vaccine.

The procedure resembled the normal vaccination protocol established at health facilities, but just in the form of a drive thru. With volunteers and other medical staff, there was little waiting time. A separate mobile unit also catered for passers-by.

Improve accessibility
At the site, Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony outlined that the idea was to improve accessibility for persons to get vaccinated against COVID-19.
“We want to make it more convenient for people to get their vaccines. We thought about this idea where people can just be in the comfort of their vehicle, drive up, someone would come to the vehicle and take their information. Then, you drive to the next station and get your vaccine. I’m happy that it’s working so effectively because I can see a steady flow of vehicles coming through, which is a really good sign,” he identified.

As of Saturday, almost 180,000 received their first dose of the vaccine in Guyana and over 47,000 second doses. These numbers are expected to rise with such initiatives.
“We’re hopeful that by the end of today’s exercise, those numbers would go up significantly…We have a few strategies that we’ll be working on over the coming weeks and we’re hopeful that those numbers will go up,” Dr Anthony asserted.
Regional Health Officer, Dr Gavinash Persaud told this publication that by midday, over 300 persons came forward to take the vaccine – dubbing it a successful initiative.

“The process is similar as if you would have gone to a centre. The difference is that you’re in your vehicle…The response has been terrific. We have two areas set up for first dose and we’re noticing that a lot of persons are coming in for their first dose compared to the second dose. So, we’re extremely pleased with that response,” the RHO highlighted.
He shared that with the success rate garnered from this drive, the Health Ministry will set the pace to incorporate such efforts in other regions and communities. The event started at 09:00h and continued for 12 hours.
“It will be successful and at the end of today, we would know how successful it was. This is a pilot here so that we can roll it off in other regions and other regions can copy what we did here. Perhaps, we can even at some time in the near future, have it on the East Coast.”
Guyana Times spoke with Dave Singh, a recipient of the first dose, who welcomed this new initiative. With little hiccups, he encouraged others to follow suit.
Donette Anthony, who also took her shot, noted, “It was fast and easy. It didn’t take more than 10 minutes…You definitely should [take the vaccine] to be safe not only for yourself”.

This initiative materialised through collaboration with the Ministries of Culture, Youth and Sports; Home Affairs; Public Works; along with other organisations.
The Ministry had already announced that vaccination sites in Georgetown would remain open until 20:00h. There are about 100 sites, both fixed and mobile, that persons can turn up to get inoculated.

Region 5 vaccination
Meanwhile, Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice) is continuing its village-to-village COVID-19 vaccination programme. This was confirmed by the Regional Chairman Vickchand Ramphal, who said the first round of the outreach initiative was successful.
As of Friday, 38.5 per cent of the adult population in Region Five had at least received their first shot of the vaccine.
Last month, the RDC had informed that the COVID-19 vaccination programme was going to be done in some villages in the region.
On Thursday, Ramphal said it was successful and arrangements are currently being made to have a second phase of the village-to-village exercise.
Ramphal, who is also the head of the Regional COVID-19 Task Force, shared, “Our people in the region are responding to the vaccine in terms of going to the health centres, the hospitals, the mobile sites and also when we are having our outreaches to get their vaccines. However, we need our people to be more conscious of the benefits of taking the vaccine so as to prevent the spread of COVID-19.”
While making an appeal for residents to continue to observe the guidelines, Ramphal noted that despite the reluctance by some to get vaccinated, the Task Force is still pushing ahead with its agenda. (G12)