The vaccination program in the city is now partially managed and enforced by barangay officials through the giving of allocated vaccination stubs for residents.
This was confirmed by Assistant City Health Service Officer Dr. Celia Flor Brillantes during last week’s media forum, the city hall hour.
On its second week, the giving of stubs has taken a load out of the Baguio City Health Services Office (BCHSO) personnel and staff who operate and look over vaccination site problems. In addition to handling the Covid-19 testing and vaccination programs, the CHSO also attend to Dengue, Rabies and other health concerns, Brillantes added.
Brillantes said the stub system which was launched with the approval of Mayor Benjamin Magalong and coordinated through Executive Assistants Philip Puzon and Benjie Macadangdang, is not new. Residents of a certain barangay could now be readily identified by local officials and accommodated, minimizing non-residents’ entry and being vaccined with city-allocated supplies. Long lines are also eliminated, since the stubs given to residents are proportional to the vaccine supply in the centers.
According to Brillantes, the arrival of vaccines has increased the number of vaccinees up to an average of 5,000 daily with the opening of additional vaccination sites at the market, the Baguio City Police Office (BCPO), City Disaster and Risk Reduction Management Office (CDRRMO).
Since August 2, vaccination is moving into the districts, as almost all have opened fixed sites, PEZA for Texas Instruments locators, Atok trail and Loakan residents; Baguio Country Club for Pacdal and Mines View residents; Divine Mercy church for Atab residents; while the University of the Cordilleras High School serves City camp residents.
For the next two weeks, Irisan residents may be able to use the Elpidio Quirino school and the church, as the Saint Louis University gym along Bonifacio street is very accessible for Aurora hill and Lucban residents.
Brillantes said big sites may be given up except for SLU, which is used hopefully up to when eighty-five percent (85%) Baguio residents would be vaccinated.
As to the mobile vaccination (Movacc) program, senior citizens in the barangays are searched out from their homes by officials of the Barangay Health Emergency Response Team (BHERTs) and convinced for vaccination. As of last week, around 11,000 senior citizens from the registered 32,000 need to have their shots, as they belong to the vulnerable group. The Movacc program, launched in May and led by Dr. Brillantes has conducted house-to-house vaccinations for immobilized and bedridden senior citizens.
