Health Ministry begins 'One Shot and Done' initiative with J&J vaccine

The Health Ministry has expanded the national vaccine deployment programme through the implementation of a One Shot and Done initiative for the rollout of the Janssen (Johnson & Johnson) covid19 vaccine.

The vaccine will be made available to prisoners and staff, healthcare workers, and frontline workers, in addition to residents in coastal and rural communities.

In a release, the ministry said prisoners and staff operate in confined spaces, significantly increasing their exposure to infectious diseases such as chickenpox and tuberculosis.

“There have been over 320 covid19 cases within the prison system since March 2020. On August 23, Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh and National Security Minister Fitzgerald Hinds visited the Golden Grove Maximum Security Prison, along with deputy commissioner of prisons Shamshudeen Mohammed, principal medical officer institutions Dr Maryam Abdool-Richards, and mental health director Dr Hazel Othello." The delegation spoke to inmates and staff about the benefits of being vaccinated.

The release said the ministry continues to prioritise healthcare workers, as they remain a high-risk, high-exposure group for contracting the covid19 virus.

For this reason, they are again being prioritised to receive another World Health Organization (WHO)-approved covid19 vaccine, to protect their patients, their families and themselves.

The ministry said the One Shot and Done initiative will also be extended to all frontline workers across Trinidad and Tobago, with special arrangements being made to vaccinate these groups.

It said the initiative represents a further acceleration of the TT government drive to protect the population from covid19.