Version 1
: Received: 1 June 2021 / Approved: 3 June 2021 / Online: 3 June 2021 (09:53:49 CEST)
How to cite:
Amani, A.; Dove, D.; Bita, A. The First 30 Days of COVID 19 Vaccination in Cameroon: Achievements, Challenges and Lessons Learned. Preprints2021, 2021060094. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202106.0094.v1.
Amani, A.; Dove, D.; Bita, A. The First 30 Days of COVID 19 Vaccination in Cameroon: Achievements, Challenges and Lessons Learned. Preprints 2021, 2021060094. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202106.0094.v1.
Cite as:
Amani, A.; Dove, D.; Bita, A. The First 30 Days of COVID 19 Vaccination in Cameroon: Achievements, Challenges and Lessons Learned. Preprints2021, 2021060094. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202106.0094.v1.
Amani, A.; Dove, D.; Bita, A. The First 30 Days of COVID 19 Vaccination in Cameroon: Achievements, Challenges and Lessons Learned. Preprints 2021, 2021060094. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202106.0094.v1.
Abstract
Cameroon's national vaccination campaign was launched on April 12, 2021, amid a nationwide outbreak of COVID-19 with two types of vaccines. This study provides preliminary evidence of the level of coverage of the population and gives an early overview of the challenges, the achievements and the lessons learned. COVID-19 vaccine administration data were obtained from data of the Cameroon Ministry of Public Health. Descriptive statistical analyses were conducted. Thirty days after the introduction of COVID 19 vaccines, five percent of the target population was vaccinated. Women represented one third of the people vaccinated regardless of age and health conditions. Although AEFI reported were minor and scanty with both vaccines, the majority of the vaccinated did not come back for their second dose. There is a need to build confidence among eligible beneficiaries in order to expand the benefits of vaccination to control the current pandemic. The country is still far below the target which could be worrisome given that the uptake is slow and, the 391 200 doses of the AstraZeneca are going to expire in August 2021. This study offers insights into those early efforts as a contribution to significant discussions about upcoming approach to improve service delivery and uptake.
Keywords
vaccination, the first 30 days; COVID-19 vaccines introduction; Cameroon; achievements; challenges; lessons learned
Subject
MEDICINE & PHARMACOLOGY, Allergology
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
