The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) reported this Wednesday, April 20, that the Ministry of Health in Nicaragua increased vaccination coverage against COVID-19 by 18% in the first quarter of 2022.
According to the agency, as of April 15, 2022, the Minsa has immunized the 65.6% of Nicaraguans with the complete two-dose schedule against the coronavirus.
At a press conference, PAHO Director Carissa Etienne urged the countries of the region to “integrate their vaccination efforts against COVID-19 within their routine immunization systems, (…) to make it easier and accessible for families to catch up on all their vaccinations at once.”
Related news: Minsa reports 49 new COVID-19 infections in seven days
“We have to extend this benefit to all people in the Americas, and there is no better time to do it than during the vaccination week that will be from April 23 to 30, when health services throughout the region will be mobilized to vaccinate. to the population,” he added.
He stressed that vaccination week should be used to immunize “the family and ensure that they are protected not only against COVID-19, but also against other diseases.”
Jarbas Barbosa, deputy director of PAHO, explained that a shipment of around 630,000 Pfizer vaccines to Nicaragua through the COVAX mechanism is scheduled for early June.
Registration of figures by COVID-19 depend on the surveillance system
Dr. Enrique Pérez, current PAHO incident manager for COVID-19, alleged that the figures for infections and deaths presented by the Minsa “are very low” compared to other countries in the region. Two years into the pandemic, Nicaragua is the only country that, since October 2020, reports a death due to coronavirus every week.
“This observation of absolute numbers (in Nicaragua) as a health indicator can guide, let’s say, that there is a lower risk compared to other populations,” he pointed out.
He pointed out that the data collected on infections and mortality “depends on the surveillance system that each country has and depends on the sensitivity of that surveillance system to identify and notify cases and mortality; For this reason, it is important to use the guidelines published by the WHO and PAHO to strengthen surveillance against COVID-19.”
As of April 19, Nicaragua has reported around 14,371 positive cases and 233 deaths from coronavirus, Pérez said.
