Dream Centre in Covid-19 vaccination
The Dream Centre of the Community of Sant’Egidio in Mandala, Blantyre, has started administering Covid-19 vaccines.
In an interview on Monday, Dream programme medical coordinator Jean-Baptiste Sagno said after training in collaboration with the Blantyre District Health Office, the centre last Thursday started offering AstraZaneca doses of the vaccine.
He said: “We have the equipment to store the vaccine. We also have enough human power in terms of doctors, nurses and clerks for us to administer the vaccines for free.
“This is most important as we are looking into how we can make vaccines available for the people in their communities.”
Sagno said they are satisfied with the response from the people, adding that plans are underway to offer jabs at other centres in Balaka, Mtengowanthenga in Dowa and Kapiri in Mchinji, among others.
“The response is good. Although some are having their first doses, others are getting the second jab.
“We look forward to administer different types of the vaccine in future,” he said.
Blantyre district health officer Gift Kawalazira welcomed Dream’s move, saying it falls within their strategy to get more people immunised.
He said: “The Dream Centre is important in this drive since some of their patients have high risk levels.
“Some of them are HIV positive while others have diabetes and other opportunistic diseases.”
The Dream Centre started its work in Malawi, mainly as an HIV and Aids programme, but now includes other non-communicable diseases such as hypertension, tuberculosis, ontology and, cervical cancer.
