The Baguio City Police Office (BCPO) will be deploying law enforcers with background on allied medical courses to serve as additional vaccinators in the different inoculation centers around the city to help in speeding up the vaccination of the members of the priority sectors.
BCPO City Director Police Col. Glen Lonogan reported he has the inventory of law enforcers with appropriate background on allied medical courses for possible deployment in the various vaccination centers around the city to augment the current vaccinators deployed by the city government through the City Health Services Office.
He claimed he conducted an ocular inspection and assessed the situation in the different vaccination centers to ensure how the additional vaccinators will be of help to achieve the directive of Mayor Benjamin B. Magalong to fastrack the ongoing vaccination of the priority sectors so that the vaccination could move on to the essential workers, among other identified vulnerable and marginalized sectors who also need to be vaccinated.
Lonogan stipulated that the additional vaccinators from the BCPO will be dedicated to the identified vaccination centers that need such augmentation until such time that the government will have vaccinated a significant portion of the population to achieve the desired herd immunity.
Earlier, Mayor Magalong requested Col. Lonogan to conduct an inventory of law enforcers assigned in the different BCPO stations who have the necessary background on allied medical courses who could be immediately deployed in congested vaccination centers.
At present, the existing staff of the BCPO is around 1,200 since the start of the ongoing Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic compared to the previous 700 to 800 warm bodies implementing stricter border controls, peacekeeping initiatives, anti-criminality efforts, among other related programs, projects and activities.
Lonogan said the vaccinators from the BCPO will be ready for deployment in pinpointed congested or overwhelmed vaccination centers anytime when the need arises to prevent the existing minimum health standards from being violated by those who want to be vaccinated.
Currently, the city has 5 vaccination centers in the government’s mass vaccination program to help in achieving the projected herd immunity in the city.
The existing vaccination centers are, the Saint Louis University (SLU) gymnasium along Bonifacio St., the University of Baguio (UB) gymnasium along Assumption Road, SM City Baguio parking area, the SLU Holy Family Center along Naguilian Road and the Baguio Country Club (BCC).
Each of the vaccination centers can accommodate at least 1,000 vaccinees daily depending on the availability of the vaccines. By Dexter A. See