By Lade Jean Kabagani/PNA
MANILA – Vaccination and jab logistics management are among the topics that will be tackled by the National Task Force (NTF) Against COVID-19 with three Israeli health experts.
The Israeli delegation, composed of Avi Ben Zaken, deputy director general of the Ichilov Medical Center; Dafna Segol, consultant of Healthcare Policy and Innovation; and Adam Segal, logistics and operations manager of Salomon Levid & Elstein Ltd.; arrived in the Philippines on Sunday afternoon and will stay until Friday.
They initially met at Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City on Monday.
“We will be having an extensive discussion on logistics management, on how we will preserve our vaccines so that we will not have wastage and how we can distribute it the soonest possible time as you directed to us, that it will be delivered on time to the provinces,” NTF head Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. told President Rodrigo Duterte during their meeting, also on Monday.
Galvez said they will also visit vaccination sites and cold storage facilities in Metro Manila.
So far, the Israeli team has shared key strategies to effectively contain virus transmission and reduce active cases within communities.
“Israel has won its battle against the pandemic through a collective effort,” Galvez said. “We can succeed if nations help each other and work together. This is the power of unity and cooperation.”
He added the government would adopt some Israeli strategies to further improve the country’s data management and vaccine deployment plans.
According to a Channel News Asia report, Israel expanded vaccine eligibility to include adolescents in May and urged more 12 to 15-year-olds to get inoculated.
Since then, infections have fallen off sharply in recent weeks.
Zaken also said during Monday’s meeting that Israelis, especially front-liners like policemen, get tested weekly.
“The data and information are keys to succeed in this battle. Everyday, we monitor the data by location and severity, where the traffic of the virus [is] and its location, and how many people are getting vaccinated everyday which are crucial in managing the pandemic,” he said.
Sagol also emphasized that strict adherence to quarantine measures and border protocols are crucial in bringing down COVID-19 cases.
“Everyone who enters Israel has to take a PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test, be vaccinated, and be quarantined for 14 days,” Segol said. (PNA) -rir
