Region 4 closer to herd immunity – Health Minister

…but says low uptake in other regions hindering Guyana’s COVID-19 fight

With over 50 per cent of the adult population in Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica) being already fully vaccinated, the region is on its way to achieving herd immunity; but according to Health Minister Dr Frank Anthony, this could be countered by low uptakes in other regions that are currently lagging.

Speaking during Wednesday’s COVID-19 update, Dr Anthony explained that regions across Guyana have varying levels of vaccination against the novel coronavirus. He pointed out that in Region Four – the country’s most populated district – there has been a high uptake of first dose vaccines, while second doses are lagging. However, the Health Minister said current trends show that will change, hence there will be more fully immunised persons in the region; but this progress could be countered by low vaccination uptake in other parts of the country.
“So, Region Four is on the way to getting closer to herd immunity. On the other hand, Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) has seen very slow uptake of the vaccine, and they are very far away from getting to herd immunity. So, we will have regions where people are going to be fully protected, and there are going to be regions where people are going to be unprotected, and we will still see lots of cases in those regions, lots of hospitalisations and possibly deaths,” Dr Anthony explained.
According to the Health Minister, there have already been reductions of hospitalisations and deaths in the Demerara-Mahaica region, due to the high vaccination number.
Unfortunately, he noted, the people who are being hospitalised with COVID-19 are predominantly unvaccinated.
“So, the unvaccinated are getting a more severe form of the disease, and they’re ending up in hospital. And of those, a subset of them, the disease would be so severe that they’re dying from COVID. Most of the people who have died from COVID now are those who are unvaccinated,” he highlighted.
To this end, Minister Anthony took the opportunity to remind the public that Government’s vaccination exercise is still being rolled out across the country, with fixed vaccination sites offering a range of vaccines to choose from. These include AstraZeneca, Sinopharm, Sputnik V components 1 and 2, Johnson and Johnson; and Pfizer, which is now available to persons 12 and above.
He also reiterated the importance of persons getting immunised in order for the country to achieve herd immunity. In fact, the Health Minister stated that Government can only do so much, it is up to the people to take personal responsibility for getting vaccinated.
“The Ministry of Health and the Government of Guyana can only do so much, and what we can do is to create the environment and create access to the vaccine. But in the final analysis, it is up to persons to go and get vaccinated. I really want to urge those who have not been vaccinated as yet to please go out and get vaccinated,” he pleaded.
Recent figures show that since the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine in February, 75.7 per cent, or 388,444 persons 18 years and older, have received a first dose vaccine; while some 255,650 persons or 49.8 per cent of the adult population, are fully immunised.
Additionally, some 28,045 persons, or 38.5 per cent of adolescents between the ages of 12 and 17, have received their first dose; while 26.2 per cent, or 19,138 persons of that age cohort, are now fully vaccinated.
But according to Dr Anthony on Wednesday, while there has been a positive response, with more persons wanting to get inoculated, there is still a large number of persons lagging. He disclosed that this is especially evident between the 12 to 40 age groups.
“We’re seeing relatively low uptake [in the] 18-to-40 age group because the numbers are relatively low in that age group. Also, while we have made the vaccines available for 12-to-17 age group…the uptake there has been relatively slow,” the Minister said.
Regarding adolescents, he noted that while the Ministry has been able to target the cohort that is in school, there are difficulties in reaching out to those out-of-school teenagers.
“The out-of-school youth, we have been struggling to get them to get their vaccines. I think one of the things we have to do is to get parents or guardians more involved, so that these young people can come and get their vaccines,” the Health Minister stated. (G8)