Canada donates “deep freezers” to Peru to reinforce vaccine preservation

The government of Canada donated 22 “deep freezers” to Peru that will reinforce the cold chain of vaccines against covid-19 and other diseases that are sent to the different regions of the country, reported this Wednesday the Ministry of Health (Minsa).

The Minsa detailed in a statement that it received the donation thanks to the support of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), and that the new equipment will serve to store the doses against COVID-19 and the Regular Vaccination Scheme.

Each piece of equipment has an approximate price of 92,000 soles (24,210 dollars) and can store up to 250,000 doses of vaccines in temperatures from -40°C to -80°C.

In this regard, the Vice Minister of Public Health, María Elena Aguilar, received this Tuesday in the northern region of La Libertad one of the equipment, which was destined for the Regional Health Management (Geresa) of that jurisdiction.

“COVID-19 is not over, let’s not let our guard down”, pointed out before adding that the current Minsa management “pursues the objective of strengthening the health system” national and asks the population to come to complete their vaccination doses.

In turn, the Canadian ambassador to Peru and Bolivia, Louis Marcotte, assured that his country is willing to continue supporting the health systems of the other nations of the Americas.

“We have to build stronger health systems and thus be prepared for future crises. In March, PAHO will begin training health personnel across the country on efficient cold chain management. We are pleased to work for the health of Peruvian society”, Marcotte added.

The Minsa reported that, in addition to La Libertad, the other freezers will be sent to Áncash, Arequipa, Ayacucho, Cajamarca, Huánuco, Lima, Ica, Lambayeque, Piura, Loreto, San Martín and Ucayali.

The Government of Peru extended last Friday the state of health emergency in the country for a period of 90 days after noting, among other reasons, that the World Health Organization (WHO) has determined that COVID-19 “continues to constitute a Public Health Emergency of International Importance (ESPII), still classified as a pandemic.”

Despite this announcement, on February 14, the Peruvian health authorities declared the end of the fifth wave of the pandemic in the country and indicated that the disease “It is in transition to an endemic phase.”

The latest report from the Ministry of Health indicated that until 10:00 p.m. on February 27, 159 new covid-19 infections were detected, while another 3 people died and 88 are hospitalized, 38 of them in intensive care units (ICU ).

Peru, which is the country with the highest mortality rate in the world from COVID-19, has registered a total of 4,486,034 confirmed cases and 219,439 deaths since the start of the pandemic.

Regarding vaccination, 74.25% of the target population (from 12 years old) has the three doses, which represents 21.21 million of the 33 million Peruvians.

Source: EFE