Gov’t to extend vaccination hours at Georgetown sites

Minister of Health, Hon. Dr. Frank Anthony says the Government will be extending the hours for COVID-19 vaccination at sites in Georgetown, as the country continues on the path to achieve herd immunity.

During his COVID-19 update on Wednesday, the Minister said despite a steady increase in vaccination numbers, some sites around the city are still lagging behind.

“This weekend, we will be extending hours of work here in Georgetown. We would like to go until 8 pm. We will start that as an experiment to see if we can get more people to come out.”

Dr. Anthony implored citizens to make taking their COVID-19 vaccine a priority. He also encouraged individuals to get their second dose to strengthen their immune system against Covid.

The Minister explained that the first dose creates antibodies, which peaks after 21 days. If the vaccine is administered at that peak, Dr. Anthony noted that the level of antibodies would further multiply.

“Your body would be prepared to fight off any COVID-19 exposure. If you don’t come in that timeframe, what happens is that the antibodies peak to a level and then remains there for a while and then would decrease,” he explained.

Dr. Anthony also noted that persons receiving their second dose will not have the option to change the brand of vaccine.

Additionally, the Minister said 172,311 individuals have already received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. This accounts for approximately 35.4 per cent of Guyana’s adult population. Some 38,467 have already received their second dose. This accounts for 22.3 per cent of the adult population.

The Government on Monday received a consignment of 67,537 doses of the Sputnik V vaccine, another quota of the 200,000 vaccine doses it purchased from Russia to protect Guyana from Covid.

The shipment, which arrived at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport, brings Guyana closer to achieving herd immunity. To date, Guyana has received 235, 463 doses of COVID-19 vaccines.