Government nurses to act as vaccinators - Drive to prepare more handlers for rollout

A Covid-19 vaccine dry run in Duttabad, Salt Lake, last week.: Telegraph Picture

Kinsuk Basu   |   TT   |   Calcutta   |    09.01.21 : Government hospitals have been asked to draw up a list of nurses who can act as vaccinators in their respective institutions, the move triggered by the staggering number of people in need of a Covid-19 vaccine in the initial phases.

The state health department has made the request to government-run hospitals, including medical colleges, to create additional personnel to facilitate the vaccine rollout.

Health department officials realised after Friday’s dry run of Covid vaccination across the state that it would take between 45 and 55 minutes on an average for a recipient to complete the vaccination process, including the mandatory 30-minute waiting time.

Roughly, that translates to close to three hours for one batch of 100 candidates to complete the vaccination process at each centre, officials said.

Since the Union health ministry’s guidelines say there can’t be more than 100 candidates at each vaccination centre per day, covering a critical mass daily would mean setting up more centres. That will ensure that the 6 lakh-odd health-care workers in Bengal get the first dose of a Covid vaccine reasonably fast.

More centres mean additional personnel.

“Each vaccination centre will require at least three chambers — a room where recipients will wait before getting their shots, a vaccination room and a room where every recipient will wait for half an hour after being vaccinated,” said a health department official coordinating with the districts for the vaccine rollout.

“Since medical colleges have more space, they can set up more centres. If nurses can function as vaccinators, it will be easier to cover more candidates every day,” said the official.

Once the list of nurses is ready, the health department will train them in handling Covid-19 vaccines. After the training is over, the nurses will be tasked with vaccinating people at the centres to be set up at their respective hospitals.

“It will be an intramuscular jab. Those who have undergone a course in general nursing and midwifery are trained in the technique. They will just have to be taught some specifics. That will serve our purpose,” said an official of the health department overseeing the rollout.

“These trained personnel will increase the number of vaccinators.”

The health department is readying a roster for around 20,000 vaccinators who will be engaged in the rollout process, right down to the level of block primary health centres and rural hospitals.

Once the vaccination starts and nurses in medical colleges get their first jabs, a section of them will undergo the training as part of the preparations for the next round of inoculation involving frontline health workers.

“The time span is 9am to 5pm every day. More vaccinators means each will get some relief while administering the jabs,” a health department official said. “It might not be easy for many vaccinators to continue working for eight hours at a stretch wearing personal protective equipment.”