The Volta Regional Acting Director of Health Service, Dr. Senanu Kwesi Dzokoto, has admonished persons who have not been administered with the COVID-19 vaccine to avail themselves for the jab.

According to him, “people continue to die from the coronavirus”, hence, it is important to take the vaccine to be fortified against contracting and suffering the ravaging effects of the virus.

He said this when speaking at the Volta Regional launch of the 7th round of the National COVID-19 Vaccination Day Campaign in Ho.

“The legacy we can hand over to the next generation is one that has made a habit out of preventive practices like hand washing, good nutrition, exercise, and good health-seeking behavior like availing ourselves to support vaccination campaigns. Let us make a deliberate effort to sustain these interventions”, he appealed.

He recounted the effects of the pandemic during its peak, where livelihoods were affected and lives were lost among other disheartening developments.

“Lest we forget; We lost many loved ones here in the Volta Region, our health workers were overwhelmed, we struggled for bed space for especially critically ill patients, oxygen supply was severely constrained.

"Our schools were closed for close to a year, we could not worship in our mosques or churches, our health service delivery was disrupted and our livelihoods were disproportionately affected.
 
"We were all affected in more than one way. Thankfully we have emerged out of the crisis stronger,” he stressed.

He disclosed that the Volta Region’s public health emergency preparedness and response capacity witnessed significant growth following the emergence of the pandemic.

He outlined the establishment of an emergency operation centre, infectious diseases centers, intensive care units, ongoing construction of oxygen plants in various facilities, agenda 111 district hospitals and capacity-building for healthcare professionals as measures adopted in preparedness for the next pandemic.

“These developments in and of themselves do not guarantee us good health. It needs to be complemented by our positive lifestyles and healthcare-seeking behavior”, he added.

Dr. Djokoto, however, bemoaned the high prevalence of vaccine hesitancy among the citizenry, indicating that less than half of Ghana’s population had received a single jab of the COVID-19 vaccine.

He said that 57.8% of the 33.47 million Ghanaians have been fully vaccinated, while only 40.6% of the Volta Region’s population received a full dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, making it the lowest among the 16 regions in the country.

He, therefore, entreated people in the region to avail themselves to be vaccinated during the upcoming campaign as it is the surest way of protecting oneself against the virus.

“We have a test case ahead of us, from Wednesday, 19th July to Sunday 23th July 2023, our target is to reach 53,134 adults who will be taking the COVID-19 vaccine for the first time”, he said.

Statistics from the Volta Regional Health Directorates indicates that 40 new cases were recorded in the region, in the first half of 2023, with about 80% of infected person from the Ho Municipality.