CEBU CITY, Philippines — Barangay health workers (BHW) in Cebu City started getting their COVID-19 vaccines on Wednesday, March 24, 2021, in two rollout sites.
The BHWs from the north district barangays were catered at the University of Cebu (UC) Banilad Campus while south district barangay health workers were catered at the Robinsons Galleria Cebu mall.
Cebu City Councilor David Tumulak, who was tasked to find a proper vaccine site, said that the sudden transfer from the Don Bosco Youth Center to UC Banilad was challenging.
Read: Two vaccination sites for Cebu City brgy. health workers, frontliners ready
Yet thankfully, due to the determination of the health workers who wanted to be vaccinated, they were able to conduct the roll-out easily despite the transfer.
“Sayon ra man kay naa ray contact sa tanang health workers, dali ra sila nakaanhi. In fact, private health workers from clinics naa pud,” said Tumulak.
(It was easy because we had all the contacts of the health workers, so they were able to come quickly. In fact, private health workers from clinics were here, too.)
Tumulak oversaw the roll-out at UC Banilad and he said the program was successful. The flow was smooth and since the roll-out was fast, he expects that the site will exceed its target of 100 individuals vaccinated today.
Due to the large available space, he said the venue was able to hold more BWHs waiting for their turn as compared to the original venue. He said the city government is grateful for the quick offer of the university to serve as a vaccination site amid the late notice.
The councilor is hoping for better responses in the next few days especially that the roll-out would continue on for the next three days.
The city government aims to vaccinate at least 1,000 BHWs along with other health workers from medical facilities in the city.
The Cebu City Health Department is yet to provide an assessment for the roll-out at Robinsons Galleria.
Here are scenes in the vaccine roll-out at UC Banilad courtesy of Councilor Tumulak:
Read: Delay in vaccine rollout for Cebu City BHW looms
/bmjo