Beneficiaries allege mismanagement of vaccination process

Many vaccine beneficiaries who had registered slots for vaccination at the government-run session sites on Sunday returned without taking their shots as they were unaware of a token system for vaccinations at the primary health centres (PHCs), amid limited availability of vaccines

Many vaccine beneficiaries who had registered slots for vaccination at the government-run session sites on Sunday returned without taking their shots as they were unaware of a token system for vaccinations at the primary health centres (PHCs), amid limited availability of vaccines.

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Officials of the health department, however, said that the problem is mainly among those aged 18-44 who are walking in without registration, as the number of vaccines in their stock is limited.

Dr MP Singh, district immunisation officer, said, “It is mandatory for people above 45 years, front-line workers and healthcare workers to get themselves registered on Co-WIN , while people who need second dose can directly walk in as they are already registered. Nearly 70% of the allocated stock is for second dose and 30% for first shot. In case of beneficiaries under 18-44 years, online registration along with appointment is a priority.”

At the government vaccination centres, people who have got themselves registered are given a token based on which they are vaccinated. At some primary health centres, the registration did not reflect on the computer system, leaving people in a panic. Officials said that people who are walking in are first registered on the database and are only then assigned a token.

Residents alleged that the problem has been compounded as private hospitals have not started the vaccine drive.

Anand Chawla, a resident of Sushant Lok-1, said that he had a harrowing experience at Tigra PHC on Sunday. “The doctor deployed there denied vaccination even after reaching on time, taking token and waiting in queue for 45 minutes. They said the quota for the day was over and asked me to come on another day. It is already painful to get an appointment for the 18-44 age group, and then this happens. They called the police to send people back home after their quota was over,” he said.

Chawla took to the internet to post his experience, following which many residents were critical of the exercise.

Ajay Sharma, resident of Tulip Ivory in Sector 70, said, “Logging and getting the appointment is a huge task. For us, it was manageable, but the rural population was facing a tough time and were in panic. Vaccination should be automated and message should be sent to people stating their vaccination date and time.”

As per Sunday’s daily bulletin of the district, 8,756 people got their first vaccine dose and 3,770 got their second jab, taking the total vaccination count to 535,518.

Health department officials and doctors at PHCs said that many people are coming for vaccination without getting registered and they create a ruckus, forcing officials to vaccinate them.

Dr Virender Yadav, chief medical officer, said, “The department received over 25,000 doses of Covishield and 6,000 doses of Covaxin on Saturday night. These doses will be given to vaccine beneficiaries above 45 years, who are scheduled for their second dose. Additional 7,500 doses have been allocated for those aged between 18 and 44. Vaccination centres can inoculate between 100 and 300 people every day. At various health centres, footfall has been high, but we can only appeal to people to maintain social distancing as they wait in queues.”

Residents said that more people want to get vaccinated due to the recent spike in cases and limited vaccine availability is a concern, due to which arguments also break out at the vaccination sites.

Vinod Tayal, a resident of DLF Phase 2, said that he had booked an appointment for taking the second dose of vaccine on May 6 between 10am and noon slot at Sukhrali UPHC-2. “When I went there and showed my booking details to the staff concerned, they refused to accept my booking slot details and asked me whether I had a token issued by them in the morning. Then, a friend informed me that I can go to Nathupur UPHC and get the second dose without a prior booking. I went there with my wife and we got the same. It is totally mismanaged and people are really suffering,” he said.