More doctors needed as Cebu City opens more vaccination sites

CEBU, Philippines —  Cebu City may have to outsource more medical personnel, especially doctors, once it opens more vaccination centers as its own COVID-19 vaccination program rolls out at full speed.

City Health Officer Jeffrey Ibones said the 38 doctors – which include job order employees – at the City Health Department are not enough to meet the manpower demand for the vaccination centers, which is on top of their responsibilities in other CHD programs like TB elimination and consultations at health centers.

“Kung mo-open pa ta’g more sites pa gyud, murag ma-grabe na gyud ang apekto sa atoang City Health Department... Karon, naapektuhan siya, pero at least manageable ra siya gyud… kung mopuno pa ta’g another site unya atong gamiton ang atong City Health doctors, samot na gyud ta kaapektado ana,” Ibones said.

The city is set to open its fourth vaccination site at SM City Cebu at the North Reclamation Area.

The other vaccination sites are at the University of Cebu-Banilad, Robinsons Galleria, and SM Seaside City.

Ibones said the job order workers are the ones boosting manpower at these vaccination sites.

“Mao na’y nakatapak gyud sa atoang manpower. Nakatabang gyud siya. Mao’y atong nagamit gyud sa atong mga sites,” he said.

Eight doctors are needed per site to handle screening, counseling, and monitoring. Barangay health workers (BHWs), nurses, and midwives serve as backup.

All personnel handling the sites at UC and Robinsons Galleria come from the City Health Department. The teams at SM Seaside City are supported by doctors from Perpetual Succour Hospital who have volunteered to help in the inoculation.

Ibones said several malls have already expressed willingness to accommodate vaccination sites once the city opens more.

Councilor David Tumulak said earlier that more residents will be vaccinated faster if more sites will be opened.

Due to the limited supply of vaccines that has reached the city, the city government has stopped its COVID-19 vaccination rollout temporarily last Friday but assured vaccination will resume once vaccines become available.

The city has just started its second phase of vaccination on April 19, 2021 for senior citizens.

CV Vaccination

Meanwhile, DOH-7 spokesperson and chief pathologist, Dr. Mary Jean Loreche, said that 87,220 of the 131,781 healthcare workers in Central Visayas have already received the first dose of vaccine as of April 27, 2021.

At least 30,197 have received the second dose and 57,023 more are set to receive it.

Loreche said 178,560 doses of vaccines (148,560 doses of Sinovac and 30,000 doses of AstraZeneca) have been distributed to 257 vaccination sites region-wide. Of this number, 108,462 doses went to Cebu; 45,870 doses went to Bohol; 17,064 doses went to Negros Oriental; and 7,164 doses went to Siquijor.

Over the same period, a total of 8,533 of 572,626 pre-listed senior citizens in Central Visayas have received the first dose – majority of them are from Cebu.

Of the 8,533 seniors, 4,924 are in Cebu City; 1,094 are from Cebu Province; 1,501 are from Mandaue City; 433 are from Lapu-Lapu; 577 are from Siquijor; and four are from Negros Oriental. Bohol is yet to start inoculating its elderly.

 The government, at present, is vaccinating those in priority groups A1 (health care workers), A2 (senior citizens), and A3 (persons with comorbidities). Mitchelle L. Palaubsanon, JMO (FREEMAN)