An old woman in HCM City gets a booster shot. —VNA/VNS Photo

HCM CITY — HCM City plans to complete the vaccination of people at risk from COVID-19 by January 20 while pressing on with rapid testing for the group.

The municipal Department of Health has ordered district-level steering committees for COVID-19 prevention and control to continue rapid testing for the risk group from January 17 to 22 and encourage locals to conduct self-testing and report results to communal-level health stations.

They were also told to swiftly access and care for those with a positive rapid test result and complete the vaccination of people in the risk group by January 20.

Earlier, HCM City launched a campaign aimed at protecting people in the risk group, which consists of those aged over 65 or having underlying health conditions, so as to minimise the rates of infection, patients in critical condition and fatalities.

The initial phase was carried out from December 7 to 31, 2021.

The city made a list of 639,972 people of the risk group, 25,642 or 4 per cent of whom have not been inoculated. Meanwhile, 5,437 people or 0.8 per cent have been infected with the coronavirus.

During the campaign, unvaccinated people have been persuaded to receive jabs at home or healthcare establishments while COVID-19 patients received antiviral drugs for treatment. This has helped reduce patients in critical condition and deaths.

A meeting of the Health Department on Wednesday pointed out that there were more than 300,000 patients already recovering from COVID-19 in HCM City, and they still needed healthcare.

Deputy Director of the department Nguyễn Anh Dũng cited data from Gia Định People’s Hospital showing that from December 1, 2021 to January 10 this year, 1,021 people recovering from the disease went there to receive check-ups, with most showing tiredness, shortness of breath, and depression.

Post-COVID-19 conditions are reported in not only serious or elderly patients but also in younger ones aged 30 - 40 or those having mild symptoms, he noted, adding that these conditions affected not only their health but also their work performance and socio-economic outlook.

The Health Department has built a healthcare strategy for those with post-COVID-19 conditions that includes a three-level model. The first level comprises grassroots medical stations caring for people in mild condition while the second are district-level hospitals in charge those in moderate condition, and the third are specialised and general hospitals for those in serious condition. — VNS