According to current forecasts, it will be an impossible task to give 70 percent of the Brussels adult population a first shot in Brussels by mid-July. Vaccination rates are also lagging behind in healthcare institutions. The Joint Community Commission (GGC) is trying to increase vaccination coverage through various initiatives.
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The Brussels vaccination campaign is sputtering. The number of first doses administered has declined in the past week. Last week, 62,000 shots were taken in the Brussels region, of which almost 29,000 first doses and 33,000 second doses. That’s bad news for the proposed target of a 70 percent vaccination coverage among adults by mid-July. To achieve this, approximately 50,000 first doses must be administered each week. Also this week, the Joint Community Commission (GGC) expects to hand out only 22,500 first shots.
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A recent survey among healthcare institutions shows that only 55 percent of healthcare staff in residential care centers in Brussels are vaccinated, reports VRT NWS. In hospitals this concerns 65 percent of the staff. That figure doesn’t seem to be rising. By way of comparison: in Flanders these percentages are estimated at 70 percent in residential care centers and 85 percent in hospitals. ‘We explicitly ask the healthcare institutions to keep their staff informed,’ says Inge Neven of the GGC.
Vaccination bus
The GGC itself is also taking various initiatives to move up a gear. Since 1 July, all over 16s can visit all vaccination centers in Brussels, except the Military Hospital in Neder-Over-Heembeek, without an appointment. A new feature is that, since Monday, 12 to 15-year-olds with comorbidity can also register for vaccination through their GP or pediatrician.
One of the most striking initiatives is the vaccination bus. It will drive to Jette on Thursday and Friday this week and will stop at 282 Jules Lahayestraat. Between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m., anyone can go there to be vaccinated without an appointment with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, of which only one shot. is needed. With this the GGC hopes to reach neighborhoods where the vaccination rate is low. The Essegem district in Jette is now the first to act. “The intention is to expand this type of action much more to other municipalities from mid-July and to increase the vaccination rate,” Inge Neven, head of the Brussels health inspectorate, tells Belga.
At the moment 57 percent of the Brussels population has been vaccinated with a first shot, by next week that will be about 60 percent. Across Belgium, 79.3 percent of the population has already received a first injection. In Flanders, that percentage even rises to 86 percent. On a European level, our country has climbed so slowly but steadily to the top. Let’s just go ahead with Malta.
