Following the approval of the Ministry of Health for vaccination of children between 5 and 11 years old, Lanzarote is preparing to start it from next Wednesday, December 15, to a total of 9,709 children who are called to be vaccinated, according to the director of the Lanzarote Health Area, Noelia Umpiérrez, on Radio Lanzarote – Onda Cero.
The intention of the island's vaccination team is to carry it out “through pediatric consultation”, or, if not possible, “without prior appointment at the Valterra Health Center”. Regarding the possibility that is being considered in other Autonomous Communities, of carrying out the vaccination in “vaccination centers” or in the schools themselves, Umpiérrez understands that “it would be more complicated”, especially in the schools themselves, since the children would have to carry “an authorization from the parents”.
According to the director, the vaccination will be “voluntary”, as it has been until now for the first and second doses, although she points out that if they see “that the percentage does not help”, the vaccination team will call the parents to “try to convince them”. In addition, the Lanzarote Health Area hopes to finish with the first dose to all children under twelve years of age "before the Epiphany".
According to the Ministry of Health of the Government of the Canary Islands, vaccination in the child population “can help reduce the burden of disease in this group”, as well as “transmission in the family environment, in schools and in the community”, in addition to contributing “to the decrease in the appearance of new variants of this virus”.
The Covid Certificate “encourages” twenty-year-olds to get vaccinated
Lanzarote has 83.2% of the population over 12 years of age with the complete vaccination schedule, a figure that has remained “stagnant” in recent months. One of the factors that have conditioned that this percentage does not continue to increase is the number of vaccinated in the group between 20 and 29 years old, which is only at 66.9%.
However, Umpiérrez has expressed some optimism, since in recent weeks they have noticed “an increase in the first doses in this group”, which in her opinion responds to the implementation of the Covid Certificate depending on the capacity. “Perhaps it has repercussions in this group that has thought about it, we hope it will be so”, said the director of the Health area.
In addition, in relation to the third doses of the vaccine, Noelia Umpiérrez assures that a total of 21,052 have been inoculated in Lanzarote, not only to those over 60 years of age but also to healthcare personnel, as well as to other jobs such as “occupational therapists, pharmacy, oculists, etc.”. And, according to the director, “it seems that vaccination will be by sectors, and not by age”, a method also used at the beginning with the first doses of the vaccine.
Only 17% of positives are from tourists
Although weeks ago the percentage of Covid positives from tourists was quite high, even reaching 35%, it currently only represents 17% of the total.
This situation responds, according to Noelia Umpiérrez, to the “increase in positives and outbreaks among residents”, and adds that “social outbreaks” are especially worrying, as well as “those people who go to work with symptoms of covid”. “Sometimes we trust ourselves because we are vaccinated, and it is cold season, and it does not cross our minds that Covid continues. We have to continue to be cautious”, Umpiérrez warned.
