According to health experts, the AstraZeneca vial can be re-refrigerated but after first opening, the cumulative storage time at room temperature must not exceed 6 hours and the total cumulative storage time must not exceed 48 hours.
Dozens of COVID-19 vaccine doses delivered by the Health Ministry to Kitgum
District went to waste due to low uptake by residents, a report by the District
Health Department has revealed. Kitgum district recently run out of
AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine, less than two months after receiving 3,120 doses from
the Health Ministry.
Statistics from the Health department indicate that 3,137
people were vaccinated from March 17 when the vaccination exercise began. But
Dr. Alex Olwedo, Kitgum District Health Officer revealed on Tuesday during an
emergency task force meeting that up to 176 doses of AstraZeneca Covid-19
vaccine went to waste. Dr. Olwedo noted that there was a low turn up of people
at the start of the vaccination exercise rendering some of the vaccine vials that
were already punctured unusable due to short shelf life.
According to health experts, the AstraZeneca vial can be
re-refrigerated but after first opening the cumulative storage time at room
temperature must not exceed 6 hours and the total cumulative storage time must
not exceed 48 hours. He said that in some Health Centers, only three people
were vaccinated a day rendering the whole opened vial useless.
William Komakech, the Kitgum Resident District Commissioner and
Chairperson of the District Covid-19 Taskforce acknowledged the wastage of the
vaccines. He notes that vaccine wastage
was recorded at Kitgum General Hospital, Hakuna Laber HCIII, Namokora HCV,
Loborom HCIII, Pajimo HCVII, Mucwini HCIII, Kitgum Matidi HCIII, Omiya Anyima
HCIII, Okidi HCIII and Orom HCIII. Komakech however says St Joseph’s Hospital
Kitgum that received 350 vials of the vaccine utilized it without recording any
wastage.
Luo
//Cue in: “Wabedo ki wastage…
Cue out:…pyerabiro wiya acel.”//
English Byte
//cue in: “The Ministry had…
Cue out:…the vaccine maximally.”//
Komakech noted that although the vaccines have since been
completed, they have notified the Health Ministry, which has assured them that
the next batch of vaccines could arrive in the country by next week. At the
same meeting, the task force recommended mass and random testing of people
within the district to ascertain the spread of Coronavirus disease among the
population.
Komakech says few people have been turning up voluntarily for testing making it
hard for the health team to understand the trend of the virus in the district.
He says a testing camp will be set up targeting vendors in the market and the
general public.
//cue in: “Today we held…
Cue out:…we are in.”//
Kitgum District has registered two new Covid-19 cases in the last week
since the resurgence of the virus, according to reports from the health
department.
