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People will self-register online for the Covid-19 jab under plans for a new high-tech system that the HSE is purchasing for the largest vaccination rollout in the country.
A high-level working group, chaired by Professor Brian MacCraith, will deliver today to the government the massive plan to bring the vaccine to the population starting in January. The success of the program is seen as critical to ending the restrictions imposed by the current pandemic.
HSE chief Paul Reid hopes to reach an agreement with tech companies to install a system that allows people who want the vaccine to register themselves, book a jab, and provide crucial data on follow-up and follow-up. who is being immunized.
The plan is also expected to recommend that “vaccine ambassadors” trusted by the public be nominated to encourage adoption.
Health Minister Stephen Donnelly said the implementation will see specific messages to counter the false information from anti-vaccines.
Immunization centers will be established, but GPs and pharmacists will also be asked to provide the vaccine later in 2021.
Reid said: “We hope to select a vendor for the IT system shortly and begin the configuration process.”
The hope is that the self-registration system will be up and running early next year.
Vaccines will initially target long-term care homes and healthcare workers, and will move to older people in the community and key workers.
It comes as the first published data on the final phase of the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine described the trial results as “impressive” and a “triumph.”
The prestigious New England Journal of Medicine He said the vaccine has a “remarkable level of safety and efficacy”, holding the promise of saving “countless lives and giving us a way out of what has been a global disaster.”
Professor Karina Butler, chair of the National Immunization Advisory Committee that drew up the priority list for vaccine access, said Ireland is awaiting the green light for the vaccine from the European Medicines Agency (EMA).
He added that the US FDA analysis of the data on the Pfizer vaccine has affirmed its efficacy: “These are encouraging signs, however it is important to ensure full EMA approval prior to the vaccine launch. In Ireland”.
Professor Butler said the pecking order on the list was based on the people most likely to contract a serious illness or die from Covid-19.
It also took into account those who cannot protect themselves and maintain a physical distance.
Medical director Dr. Tony Holohan would not be attracted now by the many doses of the Pfizer vaccine that the Republic might initially expect. but it is expected to be 200,000 to 300,000. This would be enough to immunize a large swath of the most vulnerable before the next shipment arrives.
The plan is expected to establish various scenarios for how many people could be offered the vaccine based on availability.
The Republic has signed advance purchase agreements with five companies that produce possible vaccines.
They include 2.3 million doses from Pfizer, 3.3 million from AstraZeneca, as well as vaccines from CureVac, Moderna and Johnson.
Emer Cooke, of Irish origin and director of the EMA, yesterday defended the decision to wait for a conditional marketing authorization for the vaccine in Europe, scheduled for the end of this month. Meanwhile, the United States is about to authorize the vaccine.
“While speed is critical, safety is our number one priority,” he said.
Irish independent
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