By Emelia B. Addae
Koforidua, Dec.15, GNA — United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) officials on Wednesday inspected the newly installed Eastern Regional walk-in cold room in Koforidua, which contains contemporary freezers and stocks a number of vaccinations for distribution.
Mr. Daniel Adu Asomaning, Eastern Regional Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) Coordinator, who toured the facility with the team, said that the region has enough vaccines, which are well stored in ultra-low vaccine freezers.
He said the vaccine stocks were sufficient for the ongoing fifth round of the mass COVID-19 immunisation campaign, which began on December 14th and is scheduled to complete on December 18th, 2022.
He said the region currently has stocks of two types of vaccines, manufactured by Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson, and that sufficient amounts have been allocated and delivered to each of the region’s 33 municipalities and districts.
“Currently, the Eastern Regional Cold Room has some stocks for other regions because national uses the regional cold room to store vaccines for other regions,” he said.
Mr. Asomaning said staff have been trained and deployed to perform the COVID-19 vaccination services campaign in the various communities.
“The fifth round of the mass COVID-19 vaccination campaign is relevant because some Ghanaians might not have had access to take their jab due to reasons such as, illness, misinformation, and disinformation,” he said.
“This campaign will provide the opportunity to clear doubt and remind the public of routine vaccination at any health facility”.
The Ghana Health Service is leading the fifth COVID-19 immunisation campaign, with support from the German government through UNICEF, a global humanitarian relief organisation.
The UNICEF delegation, which is on a five-day visit to the Eastern Region, praised health professionals in the region and across the country for their dedication to achieving high immunisation coverage.
During the team’s visit to the New Juaben North Municipality, nurses at Jumapor, Suhyen Mpaem, Oyoko, and Suhyen Health Centers educated parents about the need for immunisation.
The team’s presence prompted some unvaccinated residents of Suhyen Mpaem to get vaccinations at the nearby Community-based Health Planning and Services (CHPS) compound.
Madam Annette Asraku, Disease Control Officer, New Juaben North Municipal Health Directorate, said health officials in the area were doing everything possible to spread vaccine information to people throughout the municipality via community information centres, radio stations, schools, house-to-house visits, and stakeholder engagement.
The COVID-19 virus causes mild to severe sickness and can be deadly. Ghana suffered the pandemic in March 2020, and COVID-19 vaccinations were introduced to boost the body’s immune system and combat the virus.
The Ghana Health Service also recommends the people wear a nasal mask, wash their hands with soap under running water regularly, and keep a safe distance among people.
GNA