By Chantalé Fletcher
THERE has been an 81% increase in Covid-19 vaccination of staff at the North Central Regional Health Authorities (NCRHA).
“Our staff vaccination drive has climbed from 48% to 81 %,” according to the Chief Executive Officer of the NCRHA) Davlin Thomas at the Ministry of Health virtual press conference on Saturday.
Thomas said a pilot project of the Covid-19 drive-thru screening was launched at the Eric Williams Complex on Friday.
He said it would help care for Covid-19 patients, in particular, to catch severe diseases early.
Thomas said, “A clinical member of staff performs a rapid focus in-vehicle screening assessment and provides simple, accurate healthcare advice, and if necessary pulse oximeter equipment so those patients could monitor themselves at home via the app.”
However, thus far, the screening was only available via appointment and the persons targeted were those who used the app.
He explained, these persons were called in for check-ups at the drive-thru at the medical complex where a doctor would see them on a fast-tracked process.
In addition, the NCRHA’s Covid-19 Preview App was consistently used by the public, especially those Covid-19 positive patients and these persons used the app at least eight times a day.
“They download their information and we act accordingly and call those persons. The daily tips page was accessed at least 45 times per day.”
Thomas said a pilot project of the Covid-19 drive-thru screening was launched at the Eric Williams Complex on January 28, which would care for Covid-19 patients, and in particular to catch severe diseases early.
He added that under the NCRHA, 1,369 elderly persons have benefited from the vaccination programme through the Elderly Express Experience.
He said several people have been trained in different areas in preparations for dealing with Covid-19, together with additional equipment.
In reference to the expansion of the services available at the NCRHA, Thomas stated it not only about making the vaccines available but accessible.
He indicated the move of the vaccination site from Wallerfield to Larry Gomes Stadium was an example, as the stadium was in the heart of the Southern side of Arima.
The other issue was how to directly impact the unvaccinated target, but with the recent information received by the Ministry of Health.
The NCRHA could now use the specificity on who these persons were and this would make it simple to design ways to access such persons.
