Staff Reporter
The number of social workers and other staff in the Free State Department of Social Development coming down with COVID-19 could be drastically reduced in the near future as they have started receiving the vaccine for the deadly disease.
Social Development MEC Mamiki Qabathe said this in an interview with The Free Stater during the launch of the vaccination programme in Bloemfontein on Monday.
She said her department should start enjoying significant stability as those who may contract the coronavirus are expected to recover faster and spend more time at work.
“So, now that they are getting vaccinated and will not suffer severely even if they catch the virus, it brings stability to the workplace,” said Qabathe.
Since the outbreak of the disease in March last year, the provincial department has recorded 366 cases with at least eight fatalities.
The South Africa Social Security Agency (SASSA), which also falls under the department, recorded a further five deaths due to complications from COVID-19.
According to the MEC, most of those who contracted the virus often interacted with outsiders.
“Many of them are our social workers, child and youth care workers and security officers, which means it’s people who are working with others,” she said.
“. . . if you look at the numbers, we have a small workforce, but for us to have 366 people infected by the virus, it’s a lot.
“It means at each and every interval when a staff member gets infected, it affects the flow of work.
“The vaccines should help reduce the number of times the offices are closed.”
The vaccination programme will run over a period of five days and it will target frontline workers in the department, including: all social service professionals; all early childhood development practitioners; community development practitioners; SASSA employees; National Development Agency staff; as well as child and youth care workers.
A total of 23 vaccination sites across the province have been identified for this.
At least 250 staff were expected to be vaccinated at the launch.
The overall target is just over 15 270, including other stakeholders.
Health MEC Montseng Tsiu said during an earlier media briefing at the launch that the Free State has to date vaccinated over 262 000 people.
The province should vaccinate at least 1.9 million people to achieve herd immunity.
She urged those aged 35 years and above to register and get vaccinated.
“The infections in the province have now stabilised but the number is still high. We should do more,” said Tsiu.
“The province is also battling the highly infectious Delta variant just like other parts of the country.
“It might not be at a large scale but the variant is here and people should exercise caution and implement the non-pharmaceutical measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus.”