Staff Reporter
Free State Health MEC Montseng Tsiu and head of department Dr David Motau have taken the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine as the province rolls out its implementation plan for healthcare workers and other key frontline staff.
The two received the jabs at the Universitas Academic Hospital in Bloemfontein on Wednesday.
“The Health MEC and the HOD felt the need to take the vaccine to give healthcare workers reasons to believe that there is nothing sinister about this vaccine because it has passed both the test of safety and efficacy,” said provincial health spokesperson Mondli Mvambi in a statement.
The vaccination of the two was part of the Research Trial Implementation study for the vaccine.
“These leaders of health in the Free State encouraged healthcare workers to voluntarily enlist to be vaccinated as part of the national drive to build herd immunity,” he added.
At least 67 percent of the South Africa’s population should be vaccinated to reach that level of immunity.
Building a herd immunity means at least 1.9 million of the 2.9 million people in the Free State will be vaccinated to ensure that they are safe from getting the virus.
The vaccination campaign is starting with healthcare workers and will then be rolled out to all other sectors of the population.
President Cyril Ramaphosa and other senior government officials have also taken the vaccine as part of efforts to boost people’s confidence in the drug.
