:format(png):focal(2100x1970:2110x1960)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gfrmedia/5D4IFQ3NFNBJHO3SKHOPSSVRFU.jpeg)
Secretary of the Department of Health (DS), Carlos Mellado López, reported this Sunday that starting tomorrow, emergency responders will be progressively vaccinated against COVID-19 at six vaccination centers led by the National Guard.
Likewise, distribution of vaccines will begin to various centers on the island to vaccinate older adults who are not residing in long-term care facilities.
“All groups are important and we want to vaccinate them all at the same time. There are many aspects that we are considering at the same time and we will work towards a better response. We are now vaccinating for four weeks and we are going to integrate phase 1b step by step, without forgetting that we are still treating health workers ”, said Mellado López.
Likewise, he said they will integrate a shift system that will be available to older adults, as well as an information platform “Dashboard” to keep vaccination data by municipality up to date. The start date for these initiatives was not mentioned in the press release.
He added that, “We have divided efforts to achieve a greater impact on vaccination. Starting tomorrow, the National Guard will begin vaccinating 300 rescuers identified by the Department of Public Safety (DSP) for each of the six available centers. That means that not all police officers can be there tomorrow to get vaccinated, only those identified and informed by DPS. The logistics are staggered to be able to attend without excluding the health workers who are still vaccinating ”, Indonesian.
The centers for vaccination against COVID-19 under the direction of the National Guard are: the Pedrín Zorrilla Coliseum in San Juan, the Rubén Rodríguez Coliseum in Bayamón, the Centro de Bellas Artes in Caguas, the Salvador Dijols Coliseum in Ponce and the Recreation Palace and Sport in Mayagüez. During this time, these centers will serve the health and care workers identified by the DSP. The established schedule is from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm.
“Our goal is to vaccinate all first responders across the island within four weeks of the start of Phase 1B. First responders, both state and municipal, will be vaccinated in the regional centers operated by the National Guard in San Juan, Caguas, Bayamón, Arecibo, Ponce and Mayagüez, ”said the adjutant general of the Puerto Rico National Guard. José J. Reyes.
They start for people over 75 years old
For her part, the director of the COVID-19 vaccination program, Iris Cardona, said that “we want adults over 75 to start vaccinating first, followed by those over 65. The vaccines will be made available to everyone according to the established priority. The elderly phase is about 400,000 people and we want to vaccinate them all through an orderly process, ”he said.
* In the case of Ponce, for Ponce Health Sciences University appointments, write to [email protected] or call 787-812-2525 *
As explained by the Minister of Health, more than 91 Ministry of Health suppliers have vaccines available and, as soon as they are received, will be distributed to said centers to vaccinate older adults. In total, Health has 64 hospitals, 51 primary care centers, 70 CDTs and 17 IPAS groups. An additional 11 IPAs will be added tomorrow and 157 community pharmacies will be added next week to support the vaccination management of older adults.
On December 15, the vaccination process for health workers began. A week ago, the vaccination of the elderly began at Walgreens and CVS Pharmacy comprehensive care facilities. Vaccination of participants in intellectual disability programs was also started.
On the other hand, Secretary of the Department of Public Security (DSP), Alexis Torres, expressed hope for the start of the vaccination process for the respondents. “Our first responders are among the officers most exposed to COVID-19 to protect the general public. So far, we have lost five colleagues from the police station and a colleague from the Disaster Management and Administration Office due to contamination with this virus. Today they are vaccinated so that they can count on that protection while continuing to provide safety and wellbeing to everyone in Puerto Rico, ”said Torres.
According to the Ministry of Health, phase 1-a will continue until the end of January, while phase 1-b, which was scheduled to begin at the end of January, is progressing. Likewise, work is underway on the logistics of vaccination of teachers and administrative staff of the Education Department.
“Our goal is always that everyone in Puerto Rico is vaccinated. To achieve this, we join forces with many components of health and safety to achieve this. In the meantime, we ask the public not to be on their guard. The mask, taking a step back and washing hands is a priority at the moment, ”concluded Mellado López.