The country is going for the vaccination campaign. The third dose at Jansen / Johnson & Johnson launched on Monday 22nd November has brought thousands out of their homes. The slogan is certainly ‘Sel Solution Vaccination’, but is it because of the awareness of offering better protection or because of collective fear and psychosis of the positive cases and deaths recorded since the spread of Delta? A form of panic vaccination? In any case, the 11 vaccination centres were packed to the point of sending people home. The mismanagement has decried on many levels.
Limit of 700 doses
The lines were endless. At the James Burty David Gymnasium in Camp Caval Curepipe, the line had already reached the Joggers’ Track in Trou aux Cerfs. The people waiting were young, old and even very old. Some were waiting with their umbrellas to protect themselves from the blazing sun and sometimes from the passing rain. Only 700 people were able to get their shots, and this represents less than half of the queue. The remaining persons, who were waiting, have been asked to return on Tuesday!
Catastrophic management
A very sad observation. Many came on site around 7.30am and most of those, who were able to get vaccinated, had been there waiting since 8am. A significant amount of the queue going up to the Trou aux Cerfs were senior citizens, masked and out of breath. Yet, it was only at around 10 o’clock that the staff announced that only 500 people would receive the first and third dose vaccines. Half an hour later, the number of vaccines available was announced – only 700 available. A nurse explained that the ministry had sent only 500 doses because they didn’t expect so many people at once and the other 200 additional doses would come around noon. “It would have been easier to manage if they had made three categories, one line for the first dose, one for the third dose and one line for the old people. The old people could have taken shelter in the courtyard of the gym instead of standing in the middle of the street, avoiding the cars and vehicles that would be passing them by. An old man had to call back his son back because he was starting to feel dizzy,” said Ramen, a citizen who came for his third dose. Yvana, who was also there for her third dose, blamed the staff and the police for being more interested in shouting at the people waiting and taking care of the car parks and the traffic, rather than separating the queue by enforcing distancing. Nabil, who was there for his first dose, complains that “it’s not normal that buses full of Bangladeshis came around 9.15am and already had arrangements that allowed them to pass jn front of others. I have been here waiting since 7.30am. We understand that the Bangladeshis have to be vaccinated but the ministry would have thought of sending a mobile team to their respective dormitories. Despite the presence of police officers and the Ministry of Health, there were some kids who managed to sneak into the gym by pretending to look for more information for the next day. Some of them were spotted and this gave way to some scenes…”
Similar situations
At the other 10 vaccination centres, the situation was more or less the same. At the Central Warehouse in Castel, the queue had reached the crossroads leading to Camp Fouquereaux. There were “This is not easy” and “This is not acceptable” at every turn, in different tones and from all ages! And cars were parked on both sides of the road and as a result, traffic suffered. At the Anjalay stadium in Mapou, you could have thought that it was a crowd of supporters for an important football match.
45,000 inoculated on day 1
The total number of inoculations for the third dose is around 45,000. A rate that is well above the rate of the third dose at Sinopharm since its launching a few weeks ago. Is this the confidence that the population has in the Johnson & Johnson vaccine? Are people really that concerned about their health or is it just the result of the psychosis created by the increase in cases and deaths? These remain unanswered questions… In addition, thousands of people have shared on private radio stations and social networks their experiences, feelings, resentments, anger towards the system and the hospitals, their traumas, but also their resignation as we face this increase in cases and deaths. Namely, since March 2021, the country has recorded 20,372 positive cases, 257 deaths and this week only, 85 deaths including 49 unvaccinated … Does this explain this rate of 45,000 administrations of third dose of this Monday?
This vaccination campaign is also marked by the start of the administration of the Pfizer Booster Dose to public health workers and those considered ‘High Risk Patients’ as well as eligible pregnant women. The administration is taking place in the five regional hospitals.
