CLOSE to 200 residents of Maverley and surrounding communities in St Andrew on Saturday received COVID-19 vaccines in a drive organised by the Rotary Club of Trafalgar, New Heights.

The club partnered with the Ministry of Health and Wellness and the community group, The Voices for Jamaica Today Foundation, to stage the event at Maverley Park.

“We are really pleased with the outcome,” said Dr Suzanne McDonald Fowles, president of theRotary Club of Trafalgar, New Heights. “We had a very ambitious target to immunise 500 residents but we are happy with the numbers achieved, especially given the high level of hesitancy that continues to take hold of our communities due mainly to disinformation that has been affecting the level of understanding about how the vaccines protect against severe disease and death,” Dr McDonald Fowles said.

“The drive means the lives of almost 200 more people have been saved, and that we are 200 more lives closer to achieving the levels of inoculation necessary for developing herd immunity and getting our country and economy back on track to normalcy,” she said.

Up to Sunday, more than 1,922 people had died from COVID-19 in Jamaica in the space of 18 months, with 13 reported deaths on Sunday. Nearly 85,000 people have been infected by the virus. There have been 53,404 recoveries.

The 200 people vaccinated in Maverley on Saturday add to the approximately 500 vaccinations achieved a little more than a week before at the nearby Pembroke Hall community centre, organised by Member of Parliament for St Andrew North Western, Dr Nigel Clarke who was on hand Saturday to lend support.

“I am very thankful to the many volunteers from the community, including the Faith Chapel at the Faith Apostolic Ministries, which allowed us to conduct the registration of the residents in their sanctuary in Maverley Park; the medical doctors and volunteers from the Rotaract Club of Kingston who gave of their time and effort; and the private sector companies which provided support,” Dr McDonald Fowles said.

Medical supplies distributors, Cari-Med, and Coldfield Distributors – makers Country Style and Pure Country juices – as well as consumer foods distributors Seprod, which provided refreshments and supplies, also participated.

Dr McDonald Fowles encouraged other service clubs and groups to undertake similar drives and invited others to partner with her organisation to expand vaccine access to Jamaicans.

“Our support for the community does not end here,” Dr McDonald Fowles underscored. “This is a community we have worked with for many years and so we will be returning in a matter of weeks to administer second doses and to assist those persons who will be ready at that time to make the decision to protect themselves,” she said.

Rotary Club of Trafalgar, New Heights, chartered in December 2008, comprises young professionals who carry out a variety of projects that target young children, adolescents and vulnerable groups, such as the physically disabled. For its Rotary Year, which commenced in July 2021, the club will focus its projects on supporting the national vaccination programme.