Posts Tagged ‘Covid-19’

Makana still ahead of EC vax pack

March 5, 2022

By Sue Maclennan

With 48 432 people fully vaccinated for Covid-19 through its public and private health services, Makana remains well ahead of other Eastern Cape local municipalities and metros – at least percentage-wise. The statistics come as Rhodes University goes ahead with its policy that staff, students and service providers must be vaccinated to access the campus, and as Wits University Vaccinology Professor Shabir Madhi confirms that a turning point has been reached in the pandemic.

A total of 63 910 people must be vaccinated for the Makana municipal area to achieve its targeted coverage. According to the Department of Health, as of 1 March, Makana was 76% of the way to that coverage.  Makana Municipality includes Makhanda, Alicedale, Riebeeck East, Salem, Seven Fountains and Fort Brown. Neighbouring Ndlambe, has achieved 31% coverage of its 54 473 target population to date.

The Sarah Baartman District as a whole has so far achieved a 46% vaccination rate. Closest to Makana percentage-wise is Nelson Mandela Bay Metro at 60% – but with a target population of 380 454, nearly six times bigger.

The numbers come from the Department of Health’s records as of 1 March 2022.

In October, the World Health Organization set a target for countries to vaccinate 70% of their populations by mid-2022. According to Covidvax.live 17 389 328 South Africans, or 28.96%, were fully vaccinated by 5 March 2022.

This week, Shabir Madhi, Professor of Vaccinology at University of the Witwatersrand and Director of the South Africa Medical Research Council Vaccines and Infectious Diseases Analytics Research Unit, says South Africa has reached a turning point in the pandemic.

The article published in The Conversation says new research on seroprevalence (Covid-19 antibody levels), hospitalization and excess deaths attributable to Covid-19, indicate that South Africa is moving into the recovery phase of the pandemic. In order to continue on this trajectory, Madhi says, vaccine coverage must be enhanced, primarily focusing on high-risk groups.

Earlier this week, an application for an urgent high court interdict to stop the implementation of Rhodes University’s mandatory Covid-19 vaccine policy was struck off the roll with costs.

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Shot in the arm for Makana this Festive Season

December 11, 2021
Members of the Department of Health’s Makana Subdistrict team with the VW Vaxxers (front row from left) Mnikezeli Fatman; Khanya Soci, Nontozinhle Hewana, Colleen Maqoko; (back row from left) Hayley Davids, Nonkqubela Monakali, Elize Williams and Nomawethu Ndukwana. Behind Ndukwana is Subdistrict head, Mohamed Docrat. Note: masks removed briefly for the photograph only. Photo: Steven Lang

It’s going to be easier than ever for residents and holidaymakers in and around Port Alfred and Makhanda to get up to date with their Covid vaccinations this festive season. The Department of Health’s VW Vaxxers are about to hit town at pop-up sites from Bushmans to Bathurst, Alexandria to Alicedale as they push this corner of the Eastern Cape closer to the 70% vaccination rate scientists say we need to get the better of the pandemic.

Four additional vaccinators and a data capturer have been brought in to boost the Department of Health’s Makana Subdistrict vaccinators over the next three months. The team will be setting up and operating pop-up vaccination sites throughout this period. Three VW Vaxxers will be based in Makana Municipality and one will work with a team in Ndlambe.

“We want to make it as easy as possible for people to get vaccinated,” said Subdistrict head of health, Mohamed Docrat. “The plan is to go to where people are, so they don’t have to interrupt what they’re doing, or make complicated plans to get to a vaccination site.”

Shopping centres, taverns and other popular spots are where you can expect to see them and while it’s helpful if you pre-register on the EVDS (electronic vaccination data system), you can also register at the pop-up.

While anyone eligible to be vaccinated is welcome at the pop-up sites (as well as the permanent sites), the team will particularly be targeting younger people. Latest available vaccination stats for the area show that the lowest vaccination rate is among the 18-34 age group. Just over half of 23 874 people targeted in that age group are fully vaccinated.

In order to stabilize infections and serious illness, the national Department of Health is aiming for a 70% vaccination rate. In September 2021, Deputy President David Mabuza said the country was on track to vaccinate 70% of South Africans before the end of the year. However, the covidvaxlive vaccination tracker reports that on 8 December 2021, 25.46% of the country’s population is fully vaccinated.

The Makana municipal area has somewhat bucked the national trend.

Vaccination targets refer to 70% of the population within an age group. For Makana, the 50-59 and 60-plus age groups reflect a 105% fully vaccinated population – an anomaly caused partly by the fact that vaccinations are recorded according to where a vaccine comes from. In other words, if a team from Makana conducts a community outreach campaign in Alexandria using vaccines from the Settlers Hospital supply, the vaccinations will be recorded for Makana.

The 34-49 age groups reflects a respectable 84% fully vaccinated rate in Makana.

The 18-34 group is at 54% and so it’s this group that will be the main focus of the campaign.

Meanwhile, while many are yet to receive their first shot, the South African Health Products Authority (SAHPRA) on Wednesday approved the distribution of the third dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for adults.  This means all adults in South Africa are now eligible for a booster shot six months after the second dose. SAPHRA says Pfizer booster shots will available from January 2022.

According to Pfizer and BioNtech, three doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine neutralise the Omicron variant (B.1.1.529 lineage). Omicron is a fast-spreading variant first identified by South African scientists.

Members of the Department of Health’s Makana Subdistrict team with the VW Vaxxers (front row from left) Khanya Soci, Elize Williams, Colleen Maqoko, Nomawethu Ndukwana, Nontozinhle Hewana; (behind, left to right) Mohamed Docrat, Mnikezeli Fatman, Nonkqubela Monakali, Magdalene Assumption, Pumla Hermans, Marilyn Haywood, Hayley Davids, Gudrun Langford, Noel Isaacs. Photo: Steven Lang

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EC reaches 1 million vaccination milestone

September 19, 2021

The Eastern Cape Department of health has reached an important milestone in Covid-19 vaccination by having 1 million of its population fully vaccinated.

By Thursday 16 September 2021, a total of 1 002 813 people had been fully vaccinated around the province, with the 60-year-olds and above accounting for the bigger percentage, currently standing at 62% having been vaccinated.
 
The milestone contributes towards attaining the herd immunity of the province of inoculating 4,5 million population by end March 2022. Of the vaccinated population, about 43 385 health workers have received their jabs.

Thus far, the department has administered a cumulative 1 929 675 jabs around the province, with 1 362 708 individuals having received either a single dose of Johnson and Johnson or both jabs of the Pfizer vaccine.

The province continues to make strides towards reaching a broader community of the province by implementing intensive vaccination campaigns.

The community-based vaccination programme with pop up vaccination sites in shopping malls, SASSA pay points, mobile points, community halls and churches ensures that services are taken closer to communities. This is particularly important in a rural province like the EasternCape, with many communities living in far flung areas of the province.

There has been a targeted strategy to strengthen rural registrations and vaccinations around the province.

The department has also focussed on increasing our capability to provide vaccinations by increasing the number of accredited sites that provide the vaccination service. Majority of the sites are Primary Care facilities, which again means our services are closer to where people live and work. We strive to make our services convenient to access.

Our vaccination drive has also been boosted by the arrival of Transnet Vaccine Train Transvaco that will travel to communities along the rail corridor in order to expand the reach of government’s vaccine programme.

Transvaco will be stationed in Gqeberha until the 24th September 2021 and moves to East London with Komani expected to be the last stop in December.

MEC Nomakhosazana Meth has
expressed words of appreciation to the Eastern Cape community for responding positively towards Covid-19 vaccination drive and calls on those eligible for vaccination to come forward to receive the life saving jab.

“This is a big achievement for the province, but as the department, we still have a responsibility to encourage those eligible to come forward for vaccination”. Meth said

Meth further showed gratitude to health personnel for the commitment and dedication they displayed in the fight against Covid-19 and the implementation of the vaccine rollout in the province.

” We are grateful for our devoted healthworkers, for your courage, persistence, and dedication. We want you to know that your sacrifices mean a great deal to the province. We truly are thankful for you and sending you love and positivity”.she added

Currently, the province has more than eight thousand active Covid-19 cases, with more than fourteen thousand people having succumbed to the virus since March 2020.

People are encouraged to continue to adhere to Covid-19 protocols by wearing masks, observing social distancing and washing your hands with water and soap. It is also important to ensure you have good ventilation when driving in vehicles and when indoors, with windows and doors open to allow fresh air to circulate.

  • Issued by the Eastern Cape Department of Health Communication Services.

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