The Tamil Nadu Government Village Health Nurses Association has flagged a number of challenges in taking up COVID-19 vaccination works. With the Village Health Nurses (VHN) involved in daily vaccination efforts, they were unable to carry out routine maternal and child healthcare services and demanded that they be engaged three days a week so that maternal and child health services were unaffected.
According to a press release, the VHNs said they were unable to take up essential maternal and child healthcare services such as antenatal and post-natal care, maternity assistance scheme, reduction of maternal and infant mortality and routine immunisation as they were engaged in daily COVID-19 vaccination works. The number of VHNs in the vaccination drive was very low when compared to the number of persons who are yet to receive two doses of the vaccine.
The Health Department should temporarily recruit additional vaccinators and compile a list of persons who refuse to get vaccinated with the reasons through self-help group volunteers. The association pointed out among the challenges in the vaccination drive were persons who refuse to get vaccinated and targets fixed for vaccination.
Despite fund allocation, many VHNs did not receive the State government’s incentive due to administrative failure. Association’s president P. Nirmala said that there were no promotion opportunities for VHNs for 30 years. Appropriate pay hike should be fixed for VHNs who completed 10 years and 20 years of service.
The association thanked the Chief Minister, Health Minister and health department officials for conducting promotion counselling for the posts of Sector Health Nurses in a transparent way.
