COVID-19 vaccine misinformation is still being peddled, particularly in hinterland communities, further contributing to immunization hesitancy as Guyana continues to grapple with the pandemic responsible for over 1,200 deaths since March 2020.
Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony made this disclosure recently, suggesting that prominent community figures are behind this unsettling state of affairs.
He said, “Some of the leaders in the communities, it might be a mixture of the toshaos or sometimes in other cases you might have other religious leaders who are peddling his type of misinformation.”
The minister stressed that this approach is actually putting communities at risk, and he is encouraging those responsible to desist.
The development has now resulted in the deployment of additional health workers to various centres to counter misinformation. He noted that this has led to vaccines becoming spoilt, since the intended allotment of jabs taken to communities are not utilized. He added that “refreezing” of vaccines is not recommended.
The misinformation, he said, is rampant in villages of Regions One, Seven, Eight and Nine.
