Action likely against Health staff in Kozhikode for damage to vaccine vials
The Hindu
Around 800 doses were found to have been damaged
The Health Department is likely to take action against some of its staff for failure to properly preserve COVID-19 vaccine at a health centre at Cherooppa in Kozhikode district of Kerala, two days after around 800 doses dispatched there were found to have been damaged. Department sources said on Thursday that an inquiry into the incident had revealed that the staff did not ensure that the vaccine vials were stored properly. Health officials said that the vaccine stock arrived by Monday evening. The public health nurse (PHN) who was on duty had left by then. The PHN directed a staff nurse over the phone to store it in an ice-lined refrigerator that maintains a temperature between 2 degrees Celsius and eight degrees Celsius. However, the nurse chose to keep it in a deep freezer in which the temperature is maintained between -15 degrees Celsius and -25 degrees Celsius. The staff noticed that the vaccine vials were damaged when they opened the boxes ahead of sending them to other vaccination centres on Tuesday.More Related News