The federal government has said it would adopt the strategy deployed during the polio pandemic in the country in vaccinating eligible citizens.
To this end, the government during the week launched the intended platform for the vaccination of people against the virus.
The Federal Ministry of Health in a statement Tuesday said under the traditional vaccination approach tagged: “TEACH”, an acronym for a 5-point strategy for vaccination developed by the vaccination implementing wing of the Federal Ministry of Health, people would have the opportunity of undertaking electronic self-registration for vaccination.
The T.E.A.C.H strategy is said to combine both traditional approaches with modern technologically enabled systems of vaccination.
Minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire, stated that TEACH stands for T: Traditional Vaccination Campaign Approach; E: Electronic Self-Registration by Eligible Nigerians; A: Assisted Electronic Registration of Eligible Nigerians; C: Concomitant Vaccination alongside Electronic Registration and H: House-to-House Electronic Registration.
He expressed hope that with the experience garnered by the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) during vaccination and subsequently eradication of polio in the country, the agency would record another feat in its handling of COVID-19.
Ehanire added that: “The World Health Organization (WHO) has advised all countries to limit vaccination for now to persons above 18 years, until research and studies are completed on any possible effect on growing children or 18 years and below, except they have severe underlying illnesses where the benefits justify the risk.
“All countries are following this guideline and other global guidelines, as Nigeria will too. This is made more important by the fact that the target population for this vaccination, as we must remember, is not the usual cohort of children that Nigeria is used to, but this time, adults.
“I urge all eligible Nigerians to take the COVID-19 vaccination when it is their turn. This is the only way we can achieve herd immunity to stop the community transmission of this deadly virus,” he added.
