Trinidad and Tobago has been allocated an initial 100,000 to 120,000 doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine via the COVAX facility. This first allocation of the COVID-19 vaccine will be delivered to Trinidad and Tobago by March 2021. This announcement was made on Saturday (30th January 2021) by Minister of Health, Terrence Deyalsingh, during the Trinidad and Tobago Medical Association (TTMA) Virtual Presidential Inauguration and Conferring of Honours Ceremony 2021. This initial allocation will provide vaccines for at least 50,000 persons as 50% of the vaccines will be reserved to ensure that each recipient receives the required two (2) doses of the vaccine. A Media Release from the Ministry of Health states that the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine has proven to be effective and can be stored in the standard vaccine refrigerator, which maintains a temperature of 2 to 8 degrees Celsius. The distribution process for this vaccine would therefore align dosely to existing vaccine protocols. The Media Release also stated, “While it is noted that the vaccine will be distributed after it receives final World Health Organisation (WHO) Emergency Use Authorisation, this announcement is a major step in securing doses of the vaccine for the Trinidad and Tobago population, especially in the face of international COVID-19 vaccine supply challenges.” The Ministry of Health has taken a three-pronged approach to securing COVID-19 vaccines:
The COVAX facility is therefore only one of the strategies currently implemented to source COVID-19 vaccines for Trinidad and Tobago. The Ministry of Health further states that it is far advanced in its preparation to receive and distribute the vaccine locally. Necessary consumables for vaccination have already been stockpiled in significant quantities, including 1 Million alcohol swabs and 1.5 Million syringes. At this time, the Ministry of Health has in-country capacity to store substantial quantities of doses of COVID-19 vaccines: over 300,000 at 2 to 8 degrees, 200,000 at -20 degrees and 200,000 at -70 degrees Celsius.
While the Ministry has already made significant steps in preparation for the national vaccine roll-out, it says it recognises that, “a public/private sector partnership is required to administer vaccines to the national population in the shortest time. This will give Trinidad and Tobago the best chance of mass protection from the evolving COVID-19 variants.” National COVID-19 vaccine deployment will be implemented using two (2) parallel pathways - the first managed directly by the Public Health Sector and the second managed by the Private Sector with oversight by the Ministry of Health. Additionally, while twenty-three (23) public health facilities have been identified as future vaccination sites, plans are in place for the creation of four (4) mass vaccination sites. Minister Deyalsingh called upon the TTMA to provide its usual support for this very important national vaccination drive. On Sunday 7th February 2021, the Ministry of Health, in collaboration with the Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of the West Indies (UWI), will host a Symposium on COVID-19 vaccines, which will address vaccine hesitancy and plans for the deployment of the COVID-19 vaccine in Trinidad and Tobago. Invitees will include the Trinidad and Tobago Registered Nurses Association. The Pharmaceutical Society of Trinidad and Tobago, The Trinidad and Tobago Manufacturers Association and the Inter-Religious Organisation of Trinidad and Tobago. We are a small operation. If you've found our articles to be informative, please consider supporting us via PayPal or buying us a coffee. Your contribution is incredibly appreciated and goes a long way. Simply sharing our articles also helps us. Sign up for our free WhatsApp Alerts to be notified as soon as we post breaking news. NEW! Check out our Merchandise Store for high-quality t-shirts, hats and more!
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