Turkana County Department of health services has embarked on availing covid-19 vaccination services at community settings as a strategy of improving access and uptake.
The plan which seeks to increase the number of vaccinated persons in Turkana from the current 2.1% to 10% by the end of 2021 in tandem with the goal of the National Ministry of Health, was rolled out during the Sunday Holy Mass at St.Michael Catholic Church, Lodwar in Turkana Central.
"This rollout was preceded by sensitization meetings and outreaches which aided in debunking myths that have hampered Governments' efforts to vaccinate over half the country's population." Harun Sifuna, the County Focal person for vaccination services said.
Daniel Erus, the County Expanded Program for Immunization (EPI) officer exposed the large population that had turned up for the services to a vaccination fact check exercise before undertaking registration and eventual vaccination.
Immediately after the sensitization which debunked all the myths, residents started calling their families, relatives and friend to take up the vaccine increasing the turnout at the vaccination centres.
"Take even a motorbike, the covid-19 vaccine is here" Florence Ibei, a 65-year-old beneficiary of the exercise was heard rallying her family members over the phone to come for the vaccine.
John Erot, a 24-year-old university student studying Electrical Engineering promised to rally his colleagues back in college to take up the jab even as he confessed that he had avoided it earlier on due to false information circulated on social media.
The exercise comes at a time when Kenya as a nation has managed to reach out to 4,902,772 eligible adults with the important jab which is approximately 5.2% of the target as of 22nd October 2021.