THE Davao City Covid-19 Task Force said on July 20 that the city government is eyeing reviving school-based vaccination in preparation for the return of face-to-face classes (F2F).
During a radio program with the Davao City Disaster Radio, Covid-19 Task Force spokesperson Dr. Michelle Schlosser said strengthening the vaccination for students is needed since the national government targets to fully implement F2F classes by November this year.
“The vaccination cluster is in contact with the Commission on Higher Education in Davao Region (Ched-Davao) and other school heads para mag coordinate sila (so they can coordinate) and we will be able to roll out school-based vaccination sa mga private and public schools,” Schlosser said.
The targets for the school-based anti-Covid-19 vaccination are in the elementary, secondary, and tertiary levels.
Schlosser said the amount of unvaccinated children in the five to 11 years old group is worrying since only 19,129 have been vaccinated out of the target 242,209.
“For three months na rollout with this, gamay kaayo siya (We have this rollout for three months but it is still very low)… Kung ingana siya, how can we be assured na protektado atong five to 11 years old (If that is the case, how can we be assured that our five to 11 years old are protected) (in school)?” Schlosser said, thus the campaign for school-based vaccination.
As of the latest, there is no directive from the Department of Education, headed by vice president Sara Duterte, requiring students to be vaccinated before they can join F2F classes.
However, students in the tertiary level are required to be vaccinated if they wish to join F2F classes based on the Department of Health and Ched’s Joint Memorandum Circular 2021-004, but attending F2F classes is not mandatory and college students can opt for blended learning. ICM