Traditional healers to get vaccine in the first phase

The provincial Department of Health (DoH) said traditional health practitioners will receive Covid-19 vaccines in the first phase of the roll-out.

The spokesperson for DoH, Dumisani Malamule, told Mpumalanga News that they are considered as frontliners (healthcare workers).The national DoH said the target population in the first phase is 1 250 000.  

Malamule said, “All traditional health practitioners (abogogo, tinyanga, abothokoza, dingaka tsa setso) should go to the nearest clinics from February 10 to fill in the database form for the Mpumalanga DoH. This will assist in planning for the upcoming vaccination.”

He said once they are on the database they will be registered for vaccination.The first shipment of one million Covid-19 vaccines from the Serum Institute of India arrived two weeks ago.The provincial department said a consignment of vaccines will be transported from the national medical depot to the provincial one.

According to a statement released by the national DoH on January 21, the vaccine will be given out in three phases. The first one will be frontline healthcare workers. Phase two will include 2 500 000 essential workers, as well as 1 100 000 persons in congregated settings, 5 000 000 people 60 years and older, and 8 000 000 people older than 18 years with comorbidities.

It is divided into three platforms: work-based vaccinations, outreach-based vaccinations and vaccination centres.

Essential workers are listed as police officers, miners and workers in security, retail, food production, funeral, teachers, banking, essential municipal and home affairs, border control and port health services.

People with comorbidities are persons living with uncontrolled diabetes, chronic lung diseases, poorly controlled cardiovascular diseases, renal diseases, HIV, tuberculosis and obesity.

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Congregated settings include care homes, detention centres, shelters and prisons. Phase three will consist of 22 500 000 other people 18 years and older.

Malamule had previously told the newspaper that the prioritisation system will have to be applied as guided by the National Health Council.

“The programme will be rolled out in three phases, starting with the most vulnerable in our province’s population. “They should bring their smart ID cards/books. When they get to the clinic they should ask for the sister in charge of the clinic who will assist them,” he explained.

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On February 12 the total number of active cases in the province stood at 2 296.