Riau Islands Governor: Don't Force Elderly To Get Vaccine Injections

Riau Islands Governor Ansar Ahmad/ANTARA

TANJUNGPINANG - Riau Islands Governor Ansar Ahmad reminded health workers not to force the elderly who do not want to be vaccinated because they are not well.

"If theydon't want it, health workers must know the reason? Don't force them, but give them an understanding," said Ansar, in Tanjungpinang, quoted by Antara, Wednesday, November 10.

Ansar said that if the elderly who had been given an understanding about the vaccine still did not want to be injected with the vaccine, then the officers did not need to force it. Officers must continue to work to inject vaccines into the elderly.

"There are still many (elderly) who still need to be injected. Of course, it must be prioritized," said the former Regent of Bintan for two periods.

Ansar said the Riau Islands COVID-19 Handling Task Force continued to strive to increase the number of elderly people to be vaccinated, because it was one of the indicators that affected the level of Community Activity Restrictions (PPKM).

Currently, he said, Riau Islands are still holding on to Level 1 PPKM, but the percentage of elderly people who have been vaccinated still needs to be increased.

"The center for receiving vaccination reports for the elderly is still relatively low, therefore we will increase it," said the Head of the Riau Islands COVID-19 Handling Task Force.

Ansar said the obstacles faced in vaccinating the elderly must be answered. The Riau Islands Provincial Government cannot handle this problem alone but requires synergy between district and city governments.

"We will immediately discuss this problem with the regent and mayor to get answers or solutions," he said.

He said the target for the first dose of vaccination for the elderly or those aged over 60 years reached 59.036 people, but only 67.76 percent of it was realized, while the target for the second dose of vaccination for the elderly reached 48.14 percent.

"We give appreciation to various parties who encourage this vaccination program to run optimally," he said.