VAX DRIVE. Puerto Princesa Mayor Lucilo Bayron visits the City Coliseum in Barangay San Pedro, Puerto Princesa City, where vaccination activities of the PPC Covac Program are held on July 21, 2021. The city will boost its inoculation drive and will start vaccination activities in rural villages starting next week. (Photo courtesy of the PPC Covac Program)
PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, Palawan – The city has ramped up its coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) vaccination program, focusing on reaching remote barangays following the delivery of its acquired jabs last week.
The city government's first delivery of 5,700 AstraZeneca doses to inoculate its goal of 145,000 people arrived in Puerto Princesa on July 21.
Dr. Ric Panganiban, head of the City Health Office (CHO) and the Puerto Princesa City Covac Program (PPC Covac Program), said on Thursday their vaccination campaign would begin next week in the rural barangays of Marufinas, Panggangan, Cabayugan, and Inagawan.
Vaccination activities in Marufinas and Panggangan are scheduled on August 3, Cabayugan cluster on August 5, and Inagawan on August 7.
"'Yan ang schedule namin next week, pero syempre depende pa 'yan kung may emergency kami na dapat gawin (These are our schedules next week unless there are emergencies that we need to respond to)," Panganiban said.
So far, the city has reached 10 percent of its overall goal of inoculating at least 145,000 residents. On July 22, 14,750 people had finished their second dosage, while 28,419 had received their first dose, which was given using a mix of Sinovac, AstraZeneca, Sputnik V, and Janssen.
The city government also received on July 21 some 8,880 doses of Janssen vaccine produced by pharmaceutical giant Johnson&Johnson.
To date, Puerto Princesa is leading the Covid-19 vaccination campaign in Mimaropa with a vaccination rate of 9.47 percent that is triple the national average of 3.3 percent, said Dr. Dean Palanca, commander of the Puerto Princesa Incident Management Team (IMT).
He said if vaccine supplies remain constant, they are confident in reaching the target of inoculating 70 percent of 201,000 residents aged 18 and above to achieve population protection by the third quarter of 2022.
"Malaking tulong itong mga bagong dating na bakuna, pero kasama na din dito 'yong binili ng city. Initial batch pa lang ito ng AstraZeneca kasi 'yong iba to follow pa (The arrival of the new vaccines, including those purchased by the city, will be a big help. This is just the initial batch of AstraZeneca because the others are just going to be sent)," Palanca said.
Meanwhile, on July 22, the IMT unveiled a new quarantine facility for returning residents who cannot afford to stay in quarantine hotels.
The structure in Sitio Magarwak, Barangay Sta. Lourdes was formerly utilized as a quarantine facility for persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) hit by Covid-19 in mid-2020.
The facility includes 60 rooms or cubicles that are constructed of thick tarpaulins and have fabric curtains as doors. A wooden bed frame with a cushion and mattress can be found within.
For families traveling together, some cubicles include double-decker beds, but the majority have single beds. The building does not have air conditioning, but each cubicle will be equipped with an electric fan, according to authorities. (PNA)
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