The government said last night that a total of 183 residents have received a COVID-19 jab in a mobile vaccination station, which has newly come into service, during a three-day period from Saturday to yesterday.
The new mobile COVID-19 vaccination station is a Health Bureau (SSM) vehicle equipped with medical facilities, which was parked outside Cheng Chong Building, a social rental housing building in Ilha Verde, from Saturday to yesterday to provide walk-in inoculation services for those living or working nearby.
The bureau has converted two vehicles equipped with medical equipment into mobile COVID-19 vaccination stations.
The bureau is yet to decide when and in which location the COVID-19 vaccination vehicles will provide inoculation services again.
In a statement on Friday, the Health Bureau said that it has launched mobile COVID-19 vaccination services with the aim of making it more convenient for residents living in different neighbourhoods to get inoculated, particularly for senior citizens, those with reduced mobility, and the infirm.
The statement said that the Health Bureau currently has two vehicles equipped with medical equipment, which have been converted into mobile COVID-19 vaccination stations.
According to Friday’s statement, each mobile COVID-19 vaccination station is run by three or four health workers, and is able to inoculate around 56 people per day.
First-aid equipment is set up at each mobile COVID-19 vaccination station in case vaccinees suffer an anaphylactic reaction.
Friday’s statement said that the Health Bureau aims to make use of its mobile COVID-19 vaccination stations to inoculate more bedridden individuals and those with reduced mobility, in collaboration with social service organisations, in which case their staff members will help transport these groups of individuals from their respective residential facilities to the mobile vaccination stations.
In addition, the statement also said that the Health Bureau will launch on-site home COVID-19 vaccination services for bedridden individuals later this month, expecting to inoculate around 10 people per day.
Last night’s statement said that a COVID-19 vaccination vehicle parked outside Cheng Chong Building in Ilha Verde from Saturday to yesterday has inoculated 183 residents living or working nearby, including those with reduced mobility, bedridden individuals, and senior citizens.
Last night’s statement underlined that afterwards the mobile COVID-19 vaccination stations will provide services in various other neighbourhoods in line with the real situation, with the aim of making it more convenient for residents to get inoculated. The statement did not mention the next time the COVID-19 vaccination vehicles will provide services.
The Health Bureau has said that it is still studying in which location the mobile vaccination stations will provide services afterwards, but priority will be given to areas where social rental housing estates and subsidised home-ownership scheme (HOS) estates are located, areas where a higher number of senior citizens live, and areas far away from regular COVID-19 vaccination facilities.
Macau’s COVID-19 vaccinations are currently carried out at 18 regular inoculation facilities, comprising two inoculation facilities at the public Conde de São Januário Hospital Centre, eight public health centres, two public health stations, the Macau Forum inoculation facility, the Mong Ha vaccination facility, as well as the private Kiang Wu Hospital, the University Hospital run by the private Macau University of Science and Technology (MUST) in Taipa, and two clinics run by the Macau Federation of Trade Unions (commonly known as Gung Luen) – one of the city’s biggest community associations.
85.8 pct jab rate
Meanwhile, Macau’s COVID-19 vaccination rate reached 85.82 percent yesterday, i.e., six sevenths of the population, which stood at 683,200 at the end of last year, had received at least one jab, according to the latest official statistics.
According to the Health Bureau’s COVID-19 vaccination website, as of 4 p.m. yesterday 586,351 people had been vaccinated against the novel coronavirus in Macau, 518,807 of whom had completed two or more doses.
A Macau General Union of Neighbourhood Associations (Kai Fong) staff member helps a senior citizen enter a mobile COVID-19 vaccination station run by the Health Bureau (SSM) outside Cheng Chong Building, a social rental housing building in Ilha Verde, yesterday. Photo: GCS
