CHITRAL: The health department started vaccination of its staffers in different districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Wednesday.

A vaccination campaign in Chitral was inaugurated at a function held at the district headquarters hospital.

Lower Chitral deputy commissioner Hassan Abid inaugurated the campaign. District health officer Dr Haider Mulk and hospital’s medical superintendent Dr Shamim were the first to be inoculated against Covid-19.

Dr Shamim told Dawn that 387 employees of the hospital had been registered for vaccination. He, however, said some nurses had reservations against the vaccine, but hoped that they would be pursued to get the jabs.

DHO Dr Mulk said the department had so far received 400 doses of the vaccine.

Separately, Upper Chitral deputy commissioner Shah Saud told Dawn that the vaccination campaign would be kicked off in the district from Monday (Feb 28).

In Shangla, the health department inaugurated the anti-Covid-19 vaccination for frontline workers at the District Headquarters Hospital, Alpuri.

Shangla deputy commissioner Hamidur Rehman, medical superintendent Dr Shafiul Mulk and others were present. In the first phase, doctors and paramedics will be vaccinated, and in the second phase, people aged 50-60 would get the doses, DHQ hospital spokesperson Dr Sharifullah Saqib said.

In Battagram, after receiving coronavirus vaccine from the provincial health department, frontline health workers started getting the shots.

The vaccination drive was inaugurated at the EPI centre in the DHQ hospital.

Deputy commissioner Abdul Hameed Khan, MS Dr Syed Naser Shah, DHO Dr Waseem Ahmed, EPI coordinator Dr Ghulam Ishaq, doctors, paramedics, nursing and support staff were present on the occasion.

Medical superintendent Dr Naser Shah told Dawn that the hospital had received 300 vaccine doses.

In Bajaur, the coronavirus vaccination drive was inaugurated by deputy commissioner Mohammad Fayyaz Khan at a ceremony in the District Headquarters Hospital, Khar.

Officials of the health department, including district health officer Dr Adnan, attended the function.

On the occasion, several officials and workers of the health department were administered the vaccine.

The health department officials told the participants that total 500 doses of vaccine were provided to Bajaur by the provincial health department. They said in the first phase only the frontline health workers would be inoculated.

According to them, the provincial health department had also promised to start sending vaccines for general public from next month.

Published in Dawn, February 25th, 2021