KMC to start vaccination at home for 80 plus & bed-ridden people

Kolkata: Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) will vaccinate the 80 plus age group and bed ridden persons in the city by reaching out to their respective residences. The announcement was made by Chairman of Board of Administrators, KMC, Firhad Hakim on Saturday after the Talk to KMC programme.

"There is a section of people who are unable to turn up physically at our health centres for getting the jab because of their old age or ailments that have made them bed-ridden. We have held talks with the state Health department in this regard and have received their consent to reach out to their homes for vaccinating them considering them as special cases," Hakim said.

However, there would be certain criterions for availing this service. The other members of that particular family need to have completed at least one dose of vaccine. One of the family members need to walk up to the nearest vaccine centre with Aadhaar card along with a photocopy of the 80 plus person to get the recipient's name noted.

In case of bed ridden persons, apart from aadhar, medical documents needs to be furnished for jotting down of names.

The officials of KMC will note down the names against the phone numbers. After finishing the day's vaccination programme at the health centre the KMC health team will call at the number and reach out to these homes with the remaining one or two doses. This will ensure that there will be no wastage in vaccine.

"A bed-ridden person needs to be attended by a nurse, a doctor or a physiotherapist on a regular basis. So chances of his/her getting affected by the virus cannot be ruled out," reiterated Hakim.

There have been a number of appeals to KMC for reaching out to this particular section of people right at their doorstep for getting themselves vaccinated.

Hakim also announced KMC's thrust on administering Covaxin to more than 40,000 people in the city whose second doses have become due.

In the last week there was an acute shortage in Covaxin supply that resulted in a backlog of second dose.

"The KMC has decided to provide Covaxin second dose from 18 mega centres with the target to vaccinate 10427 persons. The 40 health centres that provide Covaxin jab will cater to 30,000 beneficiaries and thus ramp up all the second due doses by this week," a senior official of KMC's Health department said.