Drive-through vaccination not just for anyone: HUSM director

KOTA BARU – The drive-through vaccination programme run by Universiti Sains Malaysia Hospital in Kubang Kerian will not function like a fast-food restaurant where anyone can just show up for a jab.

Hospital director Prof Datuk Dr Ahmad Sukari Halim said the drive-through programme first caters to frontliners who had gotten their first dose and had issues when it was time for their second dose. 

Among the issues were having Covid-19 symptoms, being in close contact with a Covid-19 person, or having entered the state from a red zone.

“Since they are frontliners, getting them vaccinated is a priority. At the same time, we want to reduce the risk of Covid-19 infection in the vaccination centre, hence the drive-through approach.

“We have now been tasked as a special vaccination centre starting May 25 (phase two), which provides jabs to the hospital’s registered patients as well as patients referred to us by the community centres.

“Patients must meet the set criteria, which is to be 60 years old and above, or between the age of 18 and 60 and having a chronic disease and being at high risk if given the vaccine at the community centres,” he said.

 

Sukari added that the vaccination centre at the hospital started operating on March 1. The vaccines were given to the hospital’s frontline staff and USM health campus staff.

The centre had vaccinated 5,000 individuals from the 10,000 doses given to them, of which approximately 130 individuals got theirs from the drive-through programme.

He said the drive-through programme is similar to a vaccine centre.

All recipients will have to scan the MySejahtera QR code, register, enter their names into the vaccination assessment system and await their turn to be vaccinated. They also need to give consent and be informed about the risks before getting the jab.

After the vaccination, the recipients will sit in their cars for 15 to 30 minutes for observation.

Although the hospital’s vaccination capacity is low compared to other centres, the drive-through is convenient for those who are wheelchair-bound since they don’t have to leave their cars. – The Vibes, June 3, 2021