ABOUT 65,000 college students in Cebu City have not yet been vaccinated against coronavirus disease (Covid-19) based on estimates, said the Cebu City Health Department (CCHD) Saturday, October 16, 2021.
CCHD head Dr. Jeffrey Ibones said the Commission on Higher Education (Ched) regional office has coordinated with them for the planned Covid-19 vaccination program for college students living in Cebu City who are willing to be jabbed, as it appeared that many college students have not yet received their Covid-19 doses.
He encouraged the students, especially those with comorbidities, to avail themselves of the vaccination, as it may be one of the considerations for the possible resumption of the face-to-face classes in higher education.
Ibones said there are about 100,000 college students enrolled in various universities and colleges in Cebu City, but they could not yet identify whether all of these students are permanent residents of the city or are from areas outside the city.
"Mao ng akong giingnan ang taga Commission on Higher Education nga just in case, mangayo lang mi sa inyong masterlist para mahibaw g'yod ta pila, unya ato siyang i-cross match sa atong mga nabakunahan sa Cebu City para di mag doble-doble," he said.
He said the estimated 65,000 students who have not yet been vaccinated can be accommodated in the city’s nine vaccination sites, and with the daily vaccination capacity of 1,500 to 2,000 vaccinees, the 65,000 individuals can receive their first dose in less than 10 days.
"Nangita g'yod mi ana nila kay laliman ka'g 65,000, kadaghan pa ana," Ibones said.
He said they will also check data from the Vaccine Information Management System to see whether these college students are already registered to ensure smooth vaccination flow.
Asked whether the city has enough supply of Covid-19 vaccine, Ibones said the city received last October 8 23,000 doses of Pfizer vaccine and the Department of Health (DOH)-Central Visayas allocates vaccine supply that is good for a week consumption per local government unit.
As of October 15, he said Cebu City has a total of 3,000 doses of Sinovac vaccine that are yet to be used for this week in addition to the about 12,000 doses of Pfizer and less than 1,000 doses of Sinopharm vaccine.
But he admitted that despite the abundance of supply, the number of vaccinees in the city has decreased by almost 50 percent.
The reason for this could be the fact that Cebu City has already inoculated almost 700,000 doses, so only those who are still undecided or who do not want to be vaccinated are the ones left in the list.
"Mao nay atong gi-fight karon. Mao na atong paningkamutan nga ato silang ma convince, but Cebu City, despite na nius-os ta, naa pa man tay mabakunahan nga ni range og 2,500 to 4,000 a day sa nine sites," Ibones said.
He noted that the city can inoculate 6,000 to 7,000 individuals in a day before. (WBS)