The city of São Paulo began this Friday (18) to actively search for children who have not been vaccinated against Covid-19. Vaccination in schools in the municipal network is scheduled to start on Monday (21).
In the state, those aged 5 to 11 can be immunized against the new coronavirus since January 14.
With a mapping of information about children who were not vaccinated, the Municipal Health Department will plan vaccination in schools.
According to the municipal secretary of Health, Edson Aparecido, community agents began to go to the homes of the families of children who were not vaccinated against Covid to take an authorization document that must be completed and returned signed to the school, from next Monday.
“We are going to carry out the vaccination process in each of the 1,400 municipal schools,” said Aparecido. Vaccination in schools should start at a symbolic event with the presence of Mayor Ricardo Nunes (MDB).
According to Aparecido, in addition to the registration made with the families by the community agents of the UBS (Basic Health Units), municipal schools also carry out a survey of students aged 5 to 11 years who have not taken the vaccine.
“From there, the parents will receive the authorization and then the child will go with her or with the parents themselves to vaccinate at school”, he said. “Without authorization or without the father, we do not vaccinate.”
Questioned, the secretary did not say whether there is already a calendar for vaccination in schools. Immunization should be staggered from the schools’ request to the receipt of signed parental authorizations.
In a note, the folder said that the UBSs are contacting municipal schools to verify the vaccination status of students.
“If they want, parents can accompany the child during the vaccination, which will take place at the beginning of classes and 30 minutes before the end of each period, on days to be defined by each school”, says the text.
Although the state government says that cities in São Paulo will be able to set up mobile vaccination posts in municipal, state and private schools, according to local reality, the Nunes administration portfolio said that it will only carry out an active search in municipal schools.
“Most children aged 5 to 6 years are concentrated in municipal schools”, said the secretary – these two ages were the ones that received the least percentage of vaccine against Covid among children in the city of São Paulo until 1 pm this Friday (18), with 63% and 69.9%, respectively, of what was planned by the city hall.
On Wednesday (16), Governor João Doria (PSDB) announced that this Saturday (19) begins the “Week E” of childhood vaccination against Covid-19 in schools, which runs until next Friday (25) .
“Municipalities that join will be able to vaccinate children without bureaucracy, with only a document of agreement from parents or guardians, who will not need to be present at the time of immunization. The term has already been made available to 645 municipalities and can be sent to parents and guardians in the schools that join the initiative”, said in a note the Secretary of State for Health.
The extension of vaccination to the state education network is still being studied by the Municipal Health Department.
Vaccination in municipal schools will extend as long as necessary, according to the Nunes administration.
Until early this Friday afternoon, the city of São Paulo had applied the first dose to about 790,000 people aged 5 to 11 against the new coronavirus, that is, 72.9% of the 1.083 million expected children.
The school can help with a campaign to convince about the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine, which the federal government does not
In the state, according to the Doria government, approximately 2.5 million children (62%) had taken the first dose of the vaccine by 1 pm this Friday.
On the 7th, during an interview at a school in Perus (north zone), back to school, Nunes said that immunization in schools was not planned and said that the city hall, for now, will not require proof of vaccination against Covid -19 for students from the municipal network.
5-year-olds who are vaccinated exclusively with pediatric Pfizer doses must wait 56 days or eight weeks for the second dose.
Anyone between 6 and 11 years old who took their first dose of Pfizer also has to wait for that same interval. For those who took Coronavac, the interval is 28 days, and they can start receiving the second dose this Saturday (19).
Vaccination in schools is praised by experts. Doctors heard by sheet stated that vaccination in schools is important.
Pediatrician Renato Kfouri, director of the Brazilian Society of Immunizations, recalled that not all parents who did not take their children to be immunized against Covid-19 are anti-vaccines. According to the doctor, there are those who didn’t have time because of work or even forgot about it. “Offering differentiated access to the vaccine, at home or at school, raises coverage and lowers the unvaccinated rate,” he said.
“Whenever you manage to approach an unvaccinated person, there are conversion results, you get some [imunizados]”, he stated.
For these cases, pediatrician Ana Escobar, a professor at the Faculty of Medicine at USP (University of São Paulo), said that schools play an important role in convincing parents who are still insecure or afraid of the vaccine.
“Teachers and directors can ask questions,” said the doctor. “The school can help with a campaign to convince about the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine, which the federal government does not,” she said.
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