Tshwane residents urged to vaccinate amidst wave

The Sammy Marks Old Council Chambers at the Sammy Marks square is now one of over 20 vaccination sites in Pretoria.

The number of vaccination sites has increased over the past month due to the high rate of infections.

Nurse Melanie Langeveldt said the site had received an overwhelmingly positive response from the public so far.

“Our uptake has not been that fast because there are a lot of misconceptions about the vaccine,” she said.

“We need to spread the news that people do not get ill from the vaccine and that it is effective.”

Langeveldt said there was an observation area and an emergency section where people who have just been vaccinated are observed for any side effects.

“There are plenty of elderly people who do not know how to register themselves so we assist those who were not able to register online to do so onsite.”

There are also posters throughout Sammy Marks square to direct people to where the vaccinations are being done.

“It is important for our people over 60 to know where to go so we tried to put signs up all around the place,” said Langeveldt.

Members of the public were encouraged to learn more about the vaccine and how it can help South Africa significantly reduce the number of infections.

The site also has medical students from the University of Pretoria who are assisting.

Rekord spoke to some of the people who had just received their first dose of the vaccine.

Here is what they had to say:

“It was very fast and easy. Once my temperature was checked, I went through and got vaccinated. The service was also excellent.” – John Adonis

“I am just fine. I was actually frightened when I got here. They told me that I might get dizzy, but there is nothing like that. When I got here and registered I received the message immediately.” – J.L. Mohale

“It was easy. The process to get vaccinated went smoothly.”- Mariana Erasmus

Numbers that matter:

8 – the number of vaccinators at each station.

40 – the number of vaccines each vaccinator administers per day.

* Notice: Coronavirus reporting at Caxton Local Media aims to combat fake news

Dear reader,

As your local news provider, we have the duty of keeping you factually informed on Covid-19 developments.

As you may have noticed, mis- and disinformation (also known as “fake news”) is circulating online.

Caxton Local Media is determined to filter through the masses of information doing the rounds and to separate truth from untruth in order to keep you adequately informed.

Local newsrooms follow a strict pre-publication fact-checking protocol. A national task team has been established to assist in bringing you credible news reports on Covid-19.

Readers with any comments or queries may contact National Group Editor Irma Green (irma@caxton.co.za) or Legal Adviser Helene Eloff (helene@caxton.co.za).

Do you have more information about the story?

Please send us an email to editorial@rekord.co.za or phone us on 083 625 4114.

For free breaking and community news, visit Rekord’s websites: Rekord East

For more news and interesting articles, like Rekord on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or Instagram