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- Western Cape Health Department says it has no idea where you will get the estimated R1.7 billion you will need for consumables and administrative costs related to the ambitious Covid-19 vaccination program.
- However, it nonetheless plans to train 1,995 vaccinators and accredit vaccination centers.
- The province believes that it has overcome the second wave of the virus, but notes that the vaccination program will arrive during the third and fourth waves, which will put even more pressure on health workers.
The Western Cape government is continuing with preparations for the first phase of the Covid-19 vaccination, but it still does not know where it is going to get the R1.7 billion it says the program will cost.
“Financing it is a significant priority,” said Finance MEC David Maynier, who is waiting to know what portion the National Treasury would cover and where the province would have to reorganize the money.
He was addressing the ad-hoc committee of the provincial legislature on Covid-19 in a virtual session.
The province does not yet know who will cover the estimated R231 in needles, syringes and other costs per vaccine, associated with the massive program that it estimates will cost around R1.7 billion.
The Western Cape Health Department hopes to be able to start its Covid-19 vaccines at least February 15 or earlier.
It is eagerly awaiting final approvals from the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority, which is testing samples from the AstraZeneca vaccine shipment that arrived on Monday.
Meanwhile, the Western Cape has identified 378 sites for the public sector and 41 sites for private sector health workers who will receive their doses first.
Curators and facility representatives are receiving training, as are 1,955 vaccinators being trained through podcasts and videos.
Consumables such as needles and syringes are being purchased for their jobs, which should also have an emergency kit on hand for a possible adverse reaction.
The province has calculated that it will cost around R231 per vaccine for administrative costs that will include consumables.
Dr. Keith Cloete, head of the province’s Health Department, said that in addition to the vaccination program, the department will have to continue treating people during the third and fourth waves and catch up on delayed elective surgeries.
So, for the health department, the hope that vaccines provide to health workers will be dimmed by managing an even greater workload until the population’s immunity goal is reached.
READ | Questions and Answers: Vaccines are on the way. This is what will happen when I get here
Covid-19 cases in the province have dropped significantly, but there were still around 2,330 acute hospital patients with Covid-19-related conditions, with 1,398 in public hospitals and 932 in private hospitals.
The finer details of the vaccination application are also being worked out, including the printing of vaccination cards and health workers who receive their SMS with their appointments and vaccination location.
Cloete said the worst-case scenario for getting the vaccine should be mild flu-like symptoms, such as a runny nose or sore throat.
One million doses of the AstraZeneca Covishield vaccine arrived at Oliver Tambo International Airport on Monday and an additional 500,000 doses are expected by late February or early March.
Twenty million doses of the Pfizer vaccine have been ordered and the contract is expected to be signed soon. The arrival date is unknown.
Cloete said other doses could start arriving in mid to late February, subject to regulatory and severance clauses that have yet to be examined.
The production date of the additional Johnson & Johnson doses to be manufactured in Port Elizabeth is not yet known.
The goal is to vaccinate about 40 million South Africans to develop the immunity of the population.
“Possibly around April large numbers will begin to arrive in the country. And once large numbers arrive, [there] it’s the ability to start vaccinating on a large scale. “
He said the Western Cape Health Department received confirmation of 35,000 doses twice for its department of health employees, which is 70,000 doses for the people employed by the department.
58,000 doses were assigned to the private sector for the first dose and the same number for the second dose.
“So if they are taken together, we currently have enough doses for more than 90,000 health workers in this province,” he said.
The third category is made up of thousands of other health workers, and the province has requested more vaccines for the province, including 4,000 health workers employed by the city of Cape Town, some 3,000 community health workers, as well as student health workers and mortuary workers. . .
The province wants the vaccines to be brought to Cape Medical Depot, and the vaccine will be distributed from there.
93 vaccine coolers are expected to be delivered this week and the vaccine card is being printed.
Vaccination facilities must be accredited, as must the people who will administer the vaccines.
“We anticipate the arrival in the middle or towards the end of next week,” said Cloete.
He predicts that the second phase will be more difficult because it will involve registering at least two million people and will require mass vaccination sites.
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