Thiruvananthapuram: State schools will become vaccination centres for teenagers from January 19, said Kerala's Health Minister Veena George on Sunday.
Anti-COVID vaccination is being administered to teenagers above 15 at present.
Students in the age group 15-17 that is those born before or in 2007, will be given Covaxin doses. Minister George said the students will be vaccinated with the permission of their parents.
The district-level task forces have been entrusted to find the schools suited for the purpose.
School authorities have been told to ensure waiting area, vaccination room and observation room at their institutions. The vaccination sessions readied at the schools will be linked to the nearest government vaccination centre, the minister said.
The district task force will decide on the vaccination sessions.
"School authorities must keep ready the list of students to be vaccinated. Students must be intimated about their slots. The authorities should also ensure that the students register on the Cowin portal before their vaccination," the minister said.
A school-level vaccination team will comprise a medical officer from the health department, vaccinator, staff nurse and support staff assigned by the institution.
The number of vaccinators can be increased based on the number of students.
"all vaccinations must be recorded on Cowin. Offline sessions are not allowed," noted the minister.
Protocol to be followed
The minister has urged the institutions to ensure that the COVID protocol is followed during the sessions.
The temperature of students should be monitored using infrared thermometers. Those with symptoms of fever should not be administered the vaccine. Vaccinated students should be sat in the observation room for 30 minutes.
Bio-medical wastes should be moved to the nearest health centre.
"All centres will have facilities to manage the Adverse Event Following Immunization (AEFI) should the vaccinated students develop health issues. Schools must have ambulances equipped with oxygen facility in the campuses."
