Ghana Health Service launches the latest COVID-19 campaign.

From today to January 24, the Ghana Health Service will conduct the latest phase of a nationwide mass COVID-19 vaccination campaign to help increase COVID-19 vaccine uptake.

The exercise is the sixth in the National COVID-19 Vaccination Days Campaign, which was launched in February of last year to increase uptake and information flow.

All people aged 15 and up, including pregnant women, are eligible to receive the vaccine in this latest campaign.

Protect Yourself, Protect Your Family, Get Vaccinated Against COVID-19 Now! is the theme of the campaign.

Data, launch

Dr Patrick Kuma-Aboagye, Director-General of the GHS, said yesterday in Accra that 31% of the national population had been fully vaccinated.

He stated that the percentage was 9,806,758 of the 18.2 million target for herd immunity and 53.9 percent of the 18.2 million target.

He stated that 12,878,326 people, or 70.6 percent of the 18.2 million herd immunity target, had received at least one dose, accounting for 40.6 percent of the total population.

Dr. Kuma-Aboagye stated that while the numbers were encouraging and higher than the regional average, they were still far below the national target of 18.2 million for herd immunity to help reduce the country’s vulnerability to outbreaks in other parts of the world, as well as the spread and impact in the country.

Secure and efficient

Dr. Kuma-Aboagye, the GHS, urged people to take advantage of the campaign and beyond, stating that all vaccines used were safe, effective, and free, and that they provided adequate protection.

“COVID-19 vaccines can and do protect the majority of people from hospitalisation and death, which is why as many doses need to be administered around the world as rapidly, and equitably, as possible. The waves clearly show that the unvaccinated were more vulnerable to death, severe illness, and hospitalization.

“And so I entreat everyone to go to the nearest health facility or vaccination centre to get vaccinated and not throw away the safety protocols. “Remember, no one is safe until all eligible individuals have been vaccinated,” he said.

On the rationale for the periodic campaigns, he stated that National COVID-19 Vaccination Days (NaCVaDs) campaigns had proven to be an effective strategy for rapidly increasing COVID-19 vaccination coverage.

He stated that the campaigns assisted in increasing administered doses from slightly more than 13 million in April of last year to more than 22 million as of January 13, 2023.

Vaccines: An Update

Dr Kwame Amponsa-Achiano, Manager of the Expanded Programme on Immunisation, provided an update on vaccination, stating that the country had received 34,047,598 doses of vaccine and distributed 30,747,418 doses.

He reiterated that, while many people were still concerned about COVID-19 vaccines, data showed that they were both effective and safe.

“Vaccination is now the primary method of COVID-19 prevention. Vaccinations save lives!

Dr. Amponsa-Achiano explained the rationale for the mass vaccination days campaigns, saying COVID-19 was still wreaking havoc on healthcare systems and economies around the world, leaving the country vulnerable to a spillover.

“The NaCVaDs campaigns have shown to be an additional key strategy that gets a lot of persons vaccinated within a short time. Five such campaigns have been successfully completed.

“The fifth campaign was completed just before the holiday season: anticipated influx/gatherings the sixth campaign is due for today, January 20 to 24,” he said.

He cited misinformation and disinformation as challenges, as well as low COVID-19 infection risk perception and responding to multiple outbreaks, including Marburg, Polio, Yellow Fever, Monkeypox, and others.

WHO

The World Health Organization’s Country Representative, Dr Francis Kasolo, said in a speech read on his behalf that the COVID-19 pandemic was still raging, with the current surge being driven largely by the Omicron sub-variant XBB.1.5.

“Some countries, including China, have been severely affected, and many others continue to record an increasing number of cases. As of 17 January 2023, there had been 662.7 million cases and over 6.7 million deaths worldwide. COVID-19 cases have clearly been increasing in many countries.

“Ghana was hailed as one of the countries that successfully managed to contain the COVID-19 pandemic. This was largely accomplished through the use of non-therapeutic measures such as face masking, social distancing, and hand hygiene.

“WHO continues to recommend the use of masks irrespective of the local epidemiological situation, given the current spread of COVID-19 globally. Not only is social distancing and hand hygiene encouraged for COVID-19 disease, but also for water-borne diseases such as cholera.

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