Over 30,000 people in the Vitebsk region have been vaccinated against coronavirus

Vaccination against coronavirus continues in the country, with plans to create herd immunity in each region, which means protecting at least 60 percent of residents.

Vaccination against coronavirus continues in the country, with plans to create herd immunity in each region, which means protecting at least 60 percent of residents. Personal stories of vaccinated individuals, their well-being after the procedure, serve as an example. If a slight fever occurs, the injection site in the shoulder joint aches, or other minor ailments appear, there is nothing to worry about: these symptoms are listed in the instructions for use as possible. Neither the Russian nor the Chinese vaccines, used in our country for the mass preventive campaign, have presented any surprises.

The anti-vaccination lobby, which sometimes emerges among skeptics as a reaction to any novelty, does exist. However, concerns are unfounded, as stated by patients and doctors who have experienced the protection themselves. As a reminder, among others, the People's Doctor of Belarus, Chief Freelance Infectologist of the Ministry of Health, Doctor of Medical Sciences, Professor, Head of the Department of Infectious Diseases of BSMU, Igor Karpov, was vaccinated with Sputnik V. At the same time, the Chinese vaccine, according to him, also works excellently, with hyperthermic reactions being less characteristic of it than of Sputnik V. However, the Russian vaccine offers a high guarantee of immunity development (91 percent).

– We are working in the usual mode, with priority given to medical workers, social workers, and employees of educational institutions. We have also started vaccinating people aged 61 and older who have chronic diseases, – comments Lyudmila Kovaleva, Deputy Head of the Main Department of Healthcare of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee. – Lists of individuals from categories not considered vulnerable are being compiled. We have begun their protection.

In the Vitebsk region, as in other regions, "Sputnik V" is being used, created through technology transfer at the Belarusian enterprise "Belmedpreparaty". As a reminder, the first industrial batch of this vaccine was administered to the Minister of Health, Dmitry Pinevich. Lyudmila Kovaleva notes that all central district hospitals in the region are carrying out vaccinations, and the vaccines are supplied throughout the region. Medical facilities where it is possible to maintain the cold chain are participating in the campaign. Special brigades from the district center primarily travel to rural areas and, according to lists, administer vaccinations on the same day.

–More than 30,000 people in the Vitebsk region have received the first component of the vaccine. Among healthcare workers, the coverage is about 60 percent, and among residents in institutions with round-the-clock stays, it is about 65 percent, – provides the details **Nina Mukhvich, acting Deputy Head Physician of the Vitebsk Regional Center for Hygiene, Epidemiology and Public Health**.

As before, the protection of vulnerable categories remains under special control, however, other interested individuals can now also join. Six batches of preventive vaccines have been received in the region. With the next batch, a wide coverage will be provided to FAPs (Feldsher-Accoucheur Points), for which mobile brigades have been formed, and additional equipment is being supplied, including freezers for transportation. Residents of boarding houses have been actively vaccinated with the Chinese vaccine in the Vitebsk region, and the Committee for Labor, Employment and Social Protection of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee supported the preventive campaign.

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