OCTOBER 23, 2020
New Delhi: The Narendra Modi government has kickstarted the process of creating a database of workers in healthcare facilities, including pharmacists, technicians, ward boys and security staffers, for administering the Covid-19 vaccine as soon as it becomes available, ThePrint has learnt.
The central government Friday shared a “standard excel-based template” that has been developed for data collection, with all states and Union Territories. The presentation also included guidelines and a link to download the template for collecting data.
States have been asked to create a “database of beneficiaries” that will “subsequently be uploaded on the Covid-19 Vaccine Beneficiary Management System (CVBMS) for individualised tracking” of all recipients.
The healthcare workers have been divided into nine broad categories — frontline workers, nurses and supervisors, medical officers, paramedical staff, support staff, medical students, scientists and research staff, clerical and administrative staff, and other healthcare personnel. These workers can be from both government and private healthcare facilities.
The nine categories will include ASHA workers, Auxiliary Nurse Midwives, staff nurses, allopathic and AYUSH doctors, dentists, lab technicians, operation theatre technicians, pharmacists, physiotherapists, radiographers, ward boys, drivers and security staff, sanitation workers and other paramedical staffers.
How will the data be compiled
The database will be compiled under the guidance of mission directors at the National Health Mission (NHM), who will be known as state nodal officers. These officers, according to the presentation, will be supported by the state immunization officers (SIO).
Both mission directors and SIOs, based in each state and district, will ensure overall coordination and supervision of the healthcare workers’ data collection and its compilation. The officers will be responsible for disseminating the guidelines and the template link for data collection in all districts as well as their circulation in government and private facilities.
“She or he will ensure bi-weekly feedback from districts on status of completion of activity and track the monitoring indicators as per timeline,” the presentation read.
It also said, “She or he will coordinate with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, National COVID Vaccine Cell for timely implementation.”
‘Districts will collate data by 31 October’
At the district-level, the district magistrates (DM) or municipal commissioners, supported by the chief medical officer, will be responsible for collection of data. They will be labelled as district nodal officers.
“Collation of data will be done at the district level only,” the presentation read.
These nodal officers will ensure that the template link and guidelines are disseminated in all health facilities within the districts. They will also be responsible for collation of the templates from all facilities by 31 October.
The presentation also said that the in-charges of “both government and private facilities in the districts will be responsible for collecting data of healthcare workers”. They will further ensure that the facilities complete the database of healthcare workers by 25 October 2020 and send it by email to the district.
Courtesy/Source: The Print
