THE Davao City Government will start its vaccine rollout for senior citizens on Tuesday, May 11, 2021.
Dr. Josephine Villafuerte, head of the Davao City Vaccination Cluster, told SunStar Davao in a phone interview that they will be piloting the vaccine rollout with Sinovac's CoronaVac.
Selected seniors will be inoculated at SM Lanang Premiere and at Matina Aplaya Elementary School around 10 a.m.
A total of 200 seniors will be vaccinated in Lanang, while around 150 seniors in Matina.
Villafuerte said that on Wednesday, May 12, the city will open Calinan Central Elementary School as another vaccination hub for the senior citizens.
More vaccine sites are expected to be opened for seniors next week, she said.
"We wanted to see what is going to happen. Pero dili pa ni siya full swing because ginatan-aw nato basin naa'y problema na dapat ayusin (But this is not in full swing yet because we want to observe if there are problems that we might encounter and need to resolve). But next week, we will be opening a lot more kaya hindi pa namin ginabalita kaayo (that is why we have not yet announced where the other venues will be)," Villafuerte said.
Seniors, who are part of the vulnerable sector, will undergo strict screening before getting the vaccine. They will also be monitored for 30 minutes to one hour after being vaccinated to check if they will experience adverse side effects.
She said, however, that the pilot vaccination will not be open for "walk-in" seniors, as they already selected those who have registered in their respective health centers.
The health official advised all seniors that have already registered to wait for a text message coming from their respective District Health offices.
"We advise seniors to wait for the call or text so they will know the time and when they will go. If magpunta sila doon, mahirapan sila ug magdasok sila sa (if they will go there even if it is not their schedule, they will be inconvenienced and crowed the) vaccination sites," the official said.
She also urged those who were notified to follow their scheduled date to avoid lining up in the following days.
Villafuerte also advised them to consult their doctors to get medical clearance for them to avail of the vaccine.
The city is targeting to vaccinate around 120,000 Dabawenyos under the Priority Group A2 or senior citizens.
According to the data provided by the Davao City Information Office (CIO), a total of 93,468 senior citizens are now in the master list of the Davao City Government to receive the anti-Covid-19 shots that will start after the vaccination of medical frontline workers is completed.
Villafuerte said they are still expecting the number to increase as the registration is still ongoing.
“The master listing is being done by two offices, which is the City Health Office (CHO), through the District Health Offices and the Office of the Senior Citizen (Osca) under the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO),” she said.
Villafuerte said the registration setup is expected to be more convenient soon as the city will pilot the integration of the vaccination registration in the Safe Davao QR.
Davao City is still vaccinating its frontline workers under the Priority Group A1.
According to the Interim National Immunization Technical Advisory Group (iNitag), the following are the priority population groups for inoculation: A1: Frontline workers in health facilities both national and local, private and public, health professionals and non-professionals like students, nursing aides, janitors, barangay health workers, etc.; and A2: Senior citizens aged 60 years old and above.
For those who want to register, they can contact the Davao City Vaccination Hotlines: 09610734965 (Smart) and 09270229087 (Globe).
Meanwhile, the City Government is targeting to finish all Group A1 this month.