The provincial government of Misamis Oriental has urged all provincial hospitals to ready the ambulances during the start of the five to 11 years old vaccination against coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).
During the weekly flag-raising Monday, Dr. Jerie Calingasan, provincial health officer and the provincial anti-Covid-19 task force chief, said this will provide a quick medical response for children who may experience severe side effects.
The province has eight provincial hospitals that are located in the towns of Talisayan, Manticao, Magsaysay, Initao, Claveria, Balingasag, Alubijid and Gingoog City.
All of the hospitals, Calingasan said, must also ensure that there is a pediatrician on duty to assist the vaccinated children.
Calingasan also confirmed that the pediatric vaccination in Misamis Oriental on February 22 will be held at the provincial capitol, specifically at the cooperative building, and will exclusively cater first for the children of the capitol employees.
“We already told our chief of hospitals. There will be no vaccination in our hospitals, but the pediatricians and ambulances in our hospitals must be ready to pick up any child who will experience side effects after vaccination,” he said.
He said there will be prioritization since the Department of Health in Northern Mindanao (DOH-10) only allocates 360 vials or 3,600 doses of the reformulated Pfizer vaccines.
“I requested all of the capitol employees that before 2 p.m. Monday to submit the names of their children to the provincial administrator’s office so that we can identify the number of your children aged five to 11 years old,” Calingasan said.
The province has a projected population of 116,000 for five to 11 years old that was given by the DOH – 10.
“We must ask for help from the Department of Education (DepEd), especially as we are returning to face-to-face classes,” he added.
In this city, the local government here has officially launched Monday the first day of the five to 11 years old Covid-19 vaccination.
The vaccination rollout for children who have comorbidities was launched in JR Borja General Hospital (JRBGH), a hospital managed by the city government, and the SM Downtown premier for children who do not have comorbidities.
Dr. Ted Yu Jr., medical officer of the city health office (CHO), said the city has an initial target of 55,000 for the particular age group.
However, he said they are also currently partnering with DepEd to consolidate the numbers of children per barangay.
‘Resbakuna Kids’
Meanwhile, the DOH-10 also launched here Monday the “Resbakuna Kids” to formally open the regionwide vaccination of children.
DOH-10 Regional Director Dr. Jose R. Llacuna Jr. led the launch together with CHO representative Dr. Rachel Dilla, City Health Insurance Officer Dr. William Bernardo, and also City Councilor and Committee on Health and Health Insurance Chair Dr. Maria Lourdes Gaane.
“Much of the efforts in achieving success rests in the hands of the populace, so if we are vaccinated, our protection is secured,” he said.
Also present during the event were SM Supermalls Regional Operations Manager Joey Tumolva and SM CDO Downtown Premier Mall Manager Evangeline Ditona.
Gaane said getting children vaccinated against Covid-19 remains to be the best protection they have against hospitalization due to severe and critical symptoms.
As a partner of the government, Tumolva said they are honored and delighted to be a partner once again of the Local Government Unit of Cagayan de Oro City on another milestone in the fight against Covid-19.
“One of the thrusts of SM Supermalls is to be a part or contribute in nation-building. We thank you, our dear government officials, for giving us this another opportunity to serve the public,” he said.
One of the parents who lined up during the launch was ‘Mumzy Vany,’ a city-based vlogger and mother of two whose biggest motivation for vaccination was her children’s safety.
She mentioned that before they arrived at the vaccination site, she researched and sought professional medical advice from their pediatrician.
The Covid-19 vaccination rollout for children within the 5-11 age group was also simultaneously launched by DOH-10 and the city government through the JRBGH.
Source: Philippines News Agency
