Relying on the kindness of strangers

AFTER a week dominated by upsetting footage of mostly elderly people being made to line up in the rain and sun for hours for vaccinations, Friday’s scenes of people sitting on chairs provided by a Good Samaritan as they waited were a breath of fresh air.

Such scenes served as reminders of our capacity for kindness and improvisation, even in the face of the most trying of circumstances.

They also illustrate the degree of inventiveness and attention to detail the population deserves to get from the Ministry of Health.

Though we welcome and encourage the actions of people like Shane Mahabirsingh – who took it upon himself to distribute and sanitise chairs outside health centres in south Trinidad – the truth is such generosity and thoughtfulness should not have been needed in the first place.

By now, the State should have devised safer, more efficient and more convenient ways to administer vaccines on a large scale, especially as a war is being waged against vaccine scepticism. It is counterproductive to be turning away the people who actually want to get jabbed.

The long lines and crowds that gathered this week outside health facilities for walk-in shots were notable.

But they were hardly novel. We have been seeing similarly long lines from day one.

Whatever the vagaries and realities surrounding the supply of covid19 vaccines, the Government has had a long time to work out the infrastructure needed to manage these numbers. Failings at earlier phases also provided opportunities for lessons to be learnt and for new suggestions to be taken on board.

One such suggestion that has been aired on social media – among other suggested by people who are not specialists, but have ample common sense – is drive-through mass vaccination facilities. They could be based at unused sporting facilities, perhaps the Brian Lara Cricket Academy at Tarouba. Many people who have been lining up for jabs are dropped off in cars. A drive-through system would guarantee physical distancing and comfort, and minimise the need for facilities to house people while they wait.

The Government’s successful experiment with collaborating with the private sector also begs the question: why not rely on that sector more through even wider outsourcing? There are limits to how much the Ministry of Health can expect its existing staff to do above and beyond their normal duties with regard to manning these mass vaccination sites. Why not allocate vaccines to private clinics and practitioners willing to administer them free of charge?

The State has already allocated vaccines for use in elderly care homes, and Tobago officials announced mobile units to go to the elderly. Such methods can be used throughout the entire country, especially rural areas, instead of encouraging a frequent, needless and risky agglomeration of people around facilities.

Some of Friday’s scenes were really heartening. But why should we have to rely on the kindness of strangers?