GMC to start yellow fever vaccine centre

Srinagar, October 5

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Government Medical College (GMC), Srinagar, is gearing up to start an immunisation centre for yellow fever after getting a green signal from the Central government.

Officials said the Directorate General of Health Services had approved the GMC, Srinagar, as a Yellow Fever Vaccination Centre.

“The Yellow Fever Vaccination Centre shall start providing vaccines soon at the immunisation clinic, run by the Department of Community Medicine at Shri Maharaja Hari Singh Hospital, Srinagar,” GMC chief spokesperson Dr Salim Khan said.

Dr Salim Khan, who is also head of the Community Medicine Department of the GMC, said it would be first such centre in J&K. “Previously those intending to travel to yellow fever-endemic countries, especially African nations, had to travel to New Delhi to get the vaccine,” he said.

There has been a public demand that influenza, typhoid and pneumococcal vaccinations be made available at a single counter with proper cold chain maintenance. “It has always been difficult to guide elderly people where exactly to reach for vaccination at genuine rates and for quality maintenance system as far as cold chain is concerned,” a senior doctor said, adding a Tetanus Toxide vaccine has to be kept at 8°C temperature.

He said the GMC was working on the modalities to set up an adult vaccination centre, where these vaccines could be kept at required temperature and administered to the people. — TNS