QC gov’t to use warehouse for ultra-cold storage of vaccines

The Quezon City government said it has contracted a private warehouse to store COVID-19 vaccines that require ultra-low temperature storage.

“Yung kausap namin, in the event na, for example, Quezon City will have allocation for a vaccine that requires a negative temperature, handa rin po sila. Kung -70 to -20, they have ways of transporting the vaccine na hindi siya masisira,” Joseph Juico, co-chair of the Quezon City Vax to Normal Task Force, told GMA News.

The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, for instance, must be stored at a temperature of -70 degrees Celsius.

Juico said that once the vaccines land at the airport, they will be transported to a central warehouse.

“And then from the central warehouse, the vaccines will be transported to all the different inoculation sites ng Quezon City. With the transport, kasama na rin diyan yung tagging, yung monitoring ng vaccines, kung tama yung temperature nila. At saka pagdating naman sa vaccine sites, mino-monitor din dapat kung ano yung bar code na naka-tag na vaccine. It should be the same bar code that’s allotted to the patient para din siya ma-monitor,” he added.

Juico also said the vaccines may be driven to the vaccination sites by refrigerated trucks.

“It’s either refrigerated trucks or they have a way of transporting it as long as yung temperature niya should be the same temperature or the temperature that is required during the transport,” he explained.

The Quezon City government will also come up with guidelines to avoid wastage of the vaccines.

“The minute that you pull it out kasi, it has to be used already. Do not open the package unless you’re sure na nandoon na yung pasyente,” Juico said.

Once the vaccine’s package is opened, Juico said they cannot be returned to the warehouse even if unused.

Quezon City has secured 1.1 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine, which does not need ultra-cold storage.   — BM, GMA News