On Wednesday, the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) provided an outline for the country’s mass inoculation programme against COVID-19 in an eight-step process that spans from registration to the administration of the vaccine once it is available to the public.
All provinces and relevant stakeholders were included in the decision making, and the strategy was according to established international health guidelines, the NCOC said in a statement. “The purpose of the strategy is to vaccinate people in a healthy environment and in accordance with health guidelines through a concrete plan.”
The online portal, National Immunisation Management System (NIMS), has been created which will be operated by the NCOC. Human interaction within the portal will be minimised to keep the system transparent, it added.
Along with NIMS, multiple Adult Vaccine Centres (AVC) have been set up across the country, which will be run by the National Vaccination and Administration Control Cell (NVACC). Coordination cells have also been established at provincial and district levels, the NCOC statement said.
The NCOC revealed an eight-step registration process for citizens which is as follows:
Process
(1) Citizens would have to text their CNIC number on 1166 or register at the NIMS website. (2) Citizens would be informed of their designated Adult Vaccine Centre. (3) Individuals may change their vaccine centre by texting 1166 of through the NIMS website. (4) Upon the availability of the vaccine at the centre, citizens would be informed of their appointment via SMS along with an individual pin number. (5) On the appointed date, citizens must visit the centre with their CNIC and the individual pin number. (6) The staff at the centre will verify CNIC and the pin number. (7) After this, the vaccine will be administered and each citizen will be kept under observation for monitoring vital signs and health for 30 minutes. (8) The government database will be updated in real-time to keep a record of citizens who have been vaccinated.
