After registering an extraordinary achievement of 126% in vaccination against COVID-19 on Saturday, Mysuru has continued to top the State in vaccination coverage, ahead of Bengaluru.
Though short of the target and also below Saturday’s record jabs, the district achieved 70% coverage on Sunday, which also happened to be the highest in the State. As against the target of vaccinating 25,050 persons, Mysuru gave the shot to 17,510 on Sunday.
Mysuru has been steadily expanding its vaccination coverage and topping the State as part of its battle against the pandemic since doctors and experts believe that immunisation is the best way to minimise complications in case of an infection spread.
Supporting the view, Chamarajanagar Deputy Commissioner M.R. Ravi, who tested positive recently despite taking two doses of the vaccine and is currently under home isolation, said, during a Facebook Live programme on Monday, that vaccine certainly reduces severity. He cited his own case and said he was on the path to recovery after a mild infection.
With Mysuru not having adequate ICU beds for COVID-19 patients, many doctors have strongly recommended vaccination, especially among those with comorbidities, and to all the eligible populations. This will, in a way, minimise pressure on hospitals, doctors and the nursing staff, who have been working since last year against the pandemic and saving lives. The current wave is turning out to be more contagious than the previous one going by the caseload, they argue.
Mysuru Medical College and Research Institute Director and Dean C.P. Nanjaraj said, “In some cases, infection has been found to be spreading much faster, affecting the lungs and worsening the immune system. Unlike last year, we have a vaccine now and all those eligible must take it for protecting themselves from the disease. It minimises complications and the chances of ICU admission.”
Already, 29 patients in Mysuru are in the ICU. In the government set-up, K.R. Hospital has 20 ICU beds while 16 are in the district hospital. Including the private hospitals, the total number of ICU beds available for attending to the seriously ill is around 100.
District Vector-Borne Diseases Control Officer Chidambar said a majority of positive cases being reported in Mysuru in the past few days were among the youth. They have mild-to-moderate symptoms and many are being treated under home isolation.
Compared to the first wave, the infection appears less severe as of now, although some patients in Mysuru are succumbing to the infection for various reasons. The best protection from the pandemic is to get vaccinated without any delay, he suggested.
Targets
Barring Mysuru and Chickballapur districts, none of the districts in the State on Sunday crossed 45% in vaccination coverage. Chickballapur achieved 49% of the target on Sunday. Surprisingly, the coverage was far lower on Sunday when compared to Saturday.
Mysuru exceeded its target on Saturday and vaccinated 31,613 persons, as against the target of 25,050. It was followed by Belagavi with 71% coverage. On Saturday, 2,65,151 persons were vaccinated in the State, while the number of Sunday was 1,19,829. Sources in the Health Department said the coverage was lower on Sunday as it was a holiday and also a festival was approaching. The coverage is expected to improve after Wednesday with new stocks of vaccine awaited on the same day.
