To test the linkage between planning and implementation, and identify challenges, a dry run for COVID-19 vaccination will be conducted in five districts of Karnataka on Saturday.
Dry runs will be conducted in three “vaccine session sites” each in Bengaluru Urban, Kalaburagi, Shivamogga, Mysuru, and Belagavi districts. Around 75 to 100 vaccinators and 375 beneficiaries are expected to be part of the dry run in Karnataka.
This follows directions from the Union government that has asked all States and Union Territories to gear up for roll-out of COVID-19 vaccination. Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bushan, who chaired a high-level meeting on Thursday to review preparedness, asked all States and UTs to ensure effective preparedness for the vaccine roll-out, by conducting a dry run on January 2.
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State Deputy Director (Immunisation) Rajani Nageshrao told
“We will have an orientation for the jurisdictional officials through the Deputy Commissioners (DCs) on Friday. The dry run will be an exercise for end-to-end testing of COVID-19 vaccination process, except the actual vaccination.
As many as 25 beneficiaries (identified healthcare workers) in the jurisdiction of each session site of the five districts will be sent a message asking them to come to the location along with their ID proof for the dry run,” she said.
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“The aim of the exercise is to understand how the actual vaccination and all related activities must take place. Three rooms, waiting area, syringes, beneficiaries, vaccinators who will administer the vaccine, adverse events following immunization (AEFI) kits which are usually kept ready during all immunisation programmes, and an observation room will be kept ready,” Dr. Rajani explained. “After the dry run is over, challenges and difficulties faced at the session sites of each district will be collected and communicated to the Union government. The exercise will provide confidence to programme managers at various levels.”
A dry run of COVID-19 vaccination was conducted in Assam, P unjab, Gujarat, and Andhra Pradesh for two days from December 28. The exercise was conducted in two districts each in these States where five session sites with 25 beneficiaries each were identified. No major issues were observed in the operational aspects during this dry run.