Asokore,- As government rolls out the nationwide covid-19 vaccination, the response of the public in accepting the vaccines have been phenomenal and impressive contrary to the myths and misconceptions expressed by many in the early days.
Reports indicate that patronage is high as vaccination centres are characterized by queues with people waiting for their turns to take the jabs being administered by trained health staff.
The Juaben North Municipality is one of the areas where the covid-19 vaccination is ongoing successfully with a lot of people visiting the various centres set up to take either the first or the second jabs of the Astrazeneca vaccine.
In all the seven major towns where the vaccination centres are set up – Effiduase, Asokore, Oyoko, Jumapo, Suhyen, Akwadum and Asikasu, some of the people GNA interviewed under the Mobilising Media for covid-19, a project being implemented by the Journalists for Human Rights (JHR) in partnership with the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), indicated that people are now convinced that the vaccines were the surest way to protect them against covid-19 complications.
It appears that many people had experienced the covid-19. Either a relative, friend or neighbour have been infected and the outcomes of such experiences are driving demands for the vaccination.
Some residents the GNA spoke to in the municipality said initially, they doubted the safety of the vaccines and the ability of the government to make the vaccines available so that they would not wait for too long in taking the second jabs as it happened in the early days of the vaccination.
“I was very doubtful of the safety of the vaccine considering the circumstances under which it was produced and the long wait for the second jabs after the first batch of people took the first of the Astrazeneca in March this year, but I am now convinced,” says a 29 year old teacher, Mr Yaw Kina.
He revealed that one of his friends who took the first jab of the Astrazeneca got infected with the disease, but did not experience any complications, however, a neighbour who had not been vaccinated at all, nearly died from covid-19 complications after a long battle at the Eastern Regional Hospital.
This indeed has changed my perception about the vaccines, hence, my resolve to get vaccinated”.
Abena Oduro from Asokore in an interview said her brother-in-law got infected but her sister tested negative because she had been vaccinated adding that, “it took several days for my brother in law to be tested positive.
For a long while, he was being treated for malaria my sister who is a is a nurse suggested that he test for the COVID-19 and it came out positive. All this while, they lived under the same roof slept on the same bed but my sister tested negative and that has convinced me to take the jab.
Mrs Nana Yaa Konadu, New Juaben North Municipal Director of Health in an interview, noted that the exercise had been smooth and the participation of the public had been very encouraging. “We think that the education and campaign about the vaccines are going down well with the people”.
She said so far, more than 2000 vaccines had been administered with mainly the Astrazeneca for both the first and second jabs and urged the public not to panic as more of the vaccines would be deployed to ensure that the target set by the government to vaccinate about 20 million of the Ghanaian population by the end of the year was achieved.
She observed that more elderly persons were taking the jabs and described it as very good since the aged were predisposed to many ailments or underlining conditions which had the tendency to fuel the covid-19 complications and called on everyone including the young to visit the nearest centre for their vaccinations.
The Municipal Director stressed that the vaccine minimizes covid-19 complications to the barest minimum and all must ignore the myths and perceptions and endeavour to take the vaccines coupled with observation of the safety protocols.
Estimates indicate that approximately 40,000 people above 18 years were targeted to be vaccinated in the Municipality out of the over 1.7 million estimated for all the 33 Municipalities and districts the Eastern Region.
The covid-19 vaccination began in march after the country became the first recipient of the Astrazenecca under the COVAX initiative and as at October 3, over 2,025,183 persons had been vaccinated countrywide according to the Ghana Health Service (GHS) situational report.
About 1,369,515 had received the first dose of the Astrazenecca, Sputnik V, Johnson & Johnson, and Moderna vaccines whiles 820,037 are fully vaccinated, meanwhile, vaccination is ongoing across the Region whiles government continues to procure more vaccines to ensure that about 20 million of the population get vaccinated by close of the year.
Source: Ghana News Agency
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