The Coronavirus vaccine program dry run begins today in Andhra Pradesh, Punjab, Gujarat and Assam which will stay for 2 days. The important aspect of the program includes focusing on the management of possible adverse events after immunisation and dry runs that include checks on cold storage and transportation arrangements. The program will be carried out in the chosen districts in each state. The four states will report their observations to the centre noted during the program.
In Andhra Pradesh, the dry run will take place in Krishna district and is directed at testing the planned executions and the laid-out mechanisms in the state, Health Commissioner Katamaneni Bhaskar told reporters on Sunday. "It will provide insights into any gaps or bottlenecks so that those could be addressed before the commencement of the actual drive," he said.
Five sessions will be held across the four states, at recognised locations with 25 test pre-identified beneficiaries - healthcare workers - for each session. Co-WIN, an electronic application that identifies beneficiaries, and essentials for vaccine introduction as per operational guidelines will be assessed and its workability will be checked. An AEFI (Adverse Event Following Immunisation) committees will be established and treatment centres will also be identified to see if the vaccine triggers an adverse response in any person.
Mr Bhaskar, "After the dry run, we will prepare a report for the State Task Force, which will review the feedback and guide us on further actions.” The report will also be submitted to the Union Health Ministry, the Commissioner said.
The health department in Assam said the vaccine dry run will be done in 2 districts - Sonitpur and Nalbari districts. Testing of the Coronavirus vaccination process involves vaccine and logistics mobilization to the sites in the two districts.
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Earlier this month, Bharat Biotech, Serum Institute of India (SII) and Pfizer had submitted to the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI), for emergency use authorisation for their COVID-19 vaccines.
Around 30 crore people have been identified to be vaccinated in the 1st phase by the government when it rolls out a vaccine for covid-19, while a total of 2,360 training sessions have been carried by far and 7,000 officials have got training, including medical officers and vaccinators.