BMC vaccination drive: ‘Turnout was more than we expected,’ says KJ Somaiya Hospital dean

Chembur resident S Subramaniam (centre) after receiving his shot, with K J Somaiya Hospital Medical Superintendent Vidya Mane (left) and Dean Dr Varsha Dilip Phadke

The turnout at K J Somaiya Hospital, Sion, on Day 1 of Phase 2 of the vaccination programme was more than expected, said the dean on Monday. Though the glitches in CoWIN app led to a delay, the hospital managed to vaccinate about 110 senior citizens and people aged above 45 with comorbidities.

"We were not expecting so many people on Day 1. We were expecting mostly phone calls enquiring about the vaccine and the process. But we were happy to see people coming forward to take their shots.

Most were walk-ins," Dean Dr Varsha Dilip Phadke said. K J Somaiya Hospital - one of the three private facilities allowed in Phase 2 -received 500 doses from the BMC on Day 1. Dr Phadke said the number of vaccinations will go up as the response gets better over the coming week.

Among the recipients was 82-year-old Chembur resident, S Subramaniam. While waiting in the observation room after taking the Covishield shot, he told mid-day, "There is mild dizziness, but that's normal. I am very happy that I have finally taken the vaccine and am now waiting for my second shot on Day 28." He added that the vaccine cost is cheap and affordable.

Speaking about the challenges on the first day, Dr Phadke said compared to government hospitals, they have less space. "But training of staff is the most important and crucial aspect." And as we are now dealing with senior citizens, they all need to be screened by experts before being vaccinated. "Seniors citizens are also more likely to get side effects," she added.

Dr Vidya Mane, medical superintendent, said the hospital saw both walk-ins and registered beneficiaries, and faced issues initially but everything ironed out within a few hours. "Due to the glitch in the app, we initially had a little bit of a problem managing people. Also, there was a crowd control challenge as beneficiaries were accompanied by their kin. But since they were all senior citizens, we decided not to make them wait for a long time."

110
Approx. no. of people who received their first dose