Dr Iwot Ndaeyo, the acting Secretary, FCT Primary Health Care Board (FPHCB), has urged vulnerable groups in the country to ensure they get vaccinated against the COVID-19 and be protected.
Ndaeyo made the call during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Abuja, against the backdrop of ongoing mass COVID-19 vaccination in the FCT tagged “Third Phase”.
According to him, some of the vaccines meant for the management of COVID-19 had expiry dates, hence the need for people to get vaccinated before the expiration.
Ndaeyo added that the FPHCB had opened various vaccination centres in the FCT so as to carry along all residents in the mass vaccination, emphasising that members the Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS in Nigeria should particularly avail themselves of the opportunity.
He said “we are rolling out the vaccination in phases; phase one targeted the eligible group, frontline health workers, strategic leaders, political, religious and traditional leaders.
“We then expanded it gradually during the second phase roll out, and now that we are on the third phase, that means mass vaccination, there is no place that you live in the FCT that you will not have access to the vaccination.
“The strategy is all about expanding service points to private health sector providers, private hospitals, laboratories and community pharmacies. They are all involved now.
“We have trained people from each of the 32 wards of the FCT; all these people are now involved and now that we have the vaccine in bulk, we expanded access for vaccination.”
He added that the FCT Minister of State, Dr Ramatu Tijjani, had observed a low turnout for routine immunisation in some places in the FCT and listed places like Orozo, Gwagwa, Ushafa, Gaobe, Sabo ìn Kuje, Centra ward of Gwagwalada, Kwali and Abaji.
Ndaeyo stressed the need for increased sensitisation and campaign about vaccines in all these places to change the narrative.
Dr Adeyemo Adeyemi, the COVID-19 Focal Person, Institute of Human Virology, who observed that some people were sceptical about the COVID-19 vaccine, called for sensitisation on the part of the media and the government.
He said “my observation is that some people are sceptical about the COVID-19 vaccine; it is a new virus but we must continue to learn more about it from the scientific side.
“The media and the government must continue to engage people on what to know about the COVID-19 virus and how helpful the vaccines are.
“The COVID-19 vaccines are safe; we need to take it for our safety,” he added