Dr. Sveta Agarwal, Director and CEO of MyVacc.in talks about burning issues surrounding vaccinations in IndiGlobal Talks with Sudheer Goutham, Founder & Editor- In-Chief, IndiGlobal Media Network.
Educational Journey
I have studied at Grant Medical College, DY Patil Medical College and Boston University and have been practicing as a pediatrician since the last 22 years. I had worked for the Government’s pulse polio immunization program in the year 94-95 and realized the huge need of vaccination in India and it was in my mind to do something regarding it.
All about My Vacc.in
We are a vaccine deliverable company with core service to provide routine vaccination to children at doorstep. We also collaborate with organizations for their CSR activities of vaccinating the needy.
My Vacc’s journey began during Covid. We realized that the task for vaccination for the Government is huge and it should not be alone in it. We worked with Maharashtra and Karnataka governments in their vaccination drives. They provided us vaccines and we vaccinated free of cost to the needy in these states. We also carry out CSR activities of companies apart from our core service of providing paid vaccinations for children.
Idea behind the venture
Parents of children coming for my consultation started talking about home vaccination. They did not want to come to hospital with kids for vaccination as it meant wasting half a day on the activity, taking leave for the purpose etc. Also, there were many instances where kids caught infection from the hospital when they came for vaccinations. So based on demand we did a pilot project of 2,200 children which was hugely successful and then started MyVacc.in last year.
Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9L-X3GUCeL4
Vaccination – a burning issue
From the beginning of the pandemic, we realised that 20-30% of kids have not got routinely vaccinated due to fear of Covid. Parents have not been taking kids for vaccination out of fear. Also, the focus of everyone had been on Covid vaccination only. So, in the last one and half years, lots of kids have remained unvaccinated. We have been taking initiatives to drive in the point about the significance of routine vaccinations of both children and adults so that vaccine preventable diseases can be put at bay. Mission of our company is to create a social impact. Gradually we plan to spread our cause to countries outside India as well.
Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9L-X3GUCeL4
Multiple challenges of vaccination
Government and NGOs are doing their bit but mindsets have to change. There is lots of vaccine hesitancy in rural areas. People there are not educated enough to understand the importance of vaccination. They do not know what vaccination is meant for. Even when they take vaccines, they do not know what they are taking it for.
They lack access to information. They do not have smart phones to get updates. Many are not aware of the pandemic and hence do not know that they need to take vaccination. Another challenge is accessibility. We are working on a project for the tribal population in the North-East. Reaching them is a challenge as they are not even roads leading to where they stay. Bike ambulances are travelling for 12-14 kilometres to vaccinate them and educate them. Also, people from metros have moved on to their hometowns. Procuring vaccines is a problem there.
Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9L-X3GUCeL4
Mindsets of anti-vaxxers
There are many anti-vaxxers both in rural as well as urban areas who influence people to not take vaccines. In the corporate sector 30-40 % people are still not vaccinated. There are mental blocks. There is fear of side effects, fear of reactions. Many social media campaigns are floating that influence people to not take vaccines as it is nothing but a gimmick of pharma companies to sell their products. So, we need to not just educate the uneducated but the educated as well about the significance of vaccines. Governments and corporate efforts are on. We are in collaboration with an organization for their CSR initiative of vaccinating 4,000 sex workers in Mumbai.
Thoughts on third wave and vaccination of children
Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9L-X3GUCeL4
Vaccination for the ones in the 12 -18 age group should not be delayed. It should be prioritised now. With their immunity we can prevent the spread of Covid. We do not have many facilities to manage child intensive care if there is a Covid outbreak in this age group. Since the first wave affected older people the most, second wave affected more of the middle-age groups, we should vaccinate children so that severity of the third wave can be prevented as they might be the sufferers if it occurs. The more the vaccination, the lesser the mutations and greater disruption in the chain of Covid Spread.
Technology and healthcare
Everything is easy due to technology. Whether it is video consultations or booking slots for vaccination, technology is used predominantly. People are adopting technology enabled healthcare. Health-tech start-ups have done a very good job in Covid times where they have helped tier-2 and tier-3 cities & doctors in managing Covid. Since there was a huge crisis of hospital beds, if it would not have been for the health-tech start-ups, managing the situation would have been even more difficult.
Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9L-X3GUCeL4
Availability of Vaccines
Vaccine supply is surplus now. At My Vacc.in, we have vaccinated people more with Covishield due to the cost factor. By the time Sputnik came our people had already been administered Covishield and Covaxin. So, we did not administer Sputnik. In my personal opinion, everyone in India should take vaccines, as the supply is not an issue now.
Adults and children who have been travelling abroad for education were allowed to do so only if they have taken both doses of Covishield. For such children, the government had made provisions for both doses of Covishield one month apart. Covishield is the choice of people who are travelling as it is accepted internationally. Covaxin should get approval sooner or later for travelling purposes. Both Covishield and Covaxin are equally good.
We are waiting for a kids’ vaccine so that we can administer it to children. We are hearing about nasal vaccines for Covid in future. It’s time to wait and watch.
Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9L-X3GUCeL4
My Vacc.in – present and future
We manage routine vaccines in Mumbai, Pune, and Bangalore majorly. Services of My Vacc.in services in Hyderabad and Chennai are in the starting up phase. We would be focusing on north -eastern states as well as Indonesia and Africa in future. Slowly we plan to enter tier 2 cities as well.
Message for remaining healthy through vaccination
Vaccines prevent diseases. Prevention is better than suffering. Vaccines are safe. Do not get influenced by all the information floating against it in social media. Authenticate the messages by educating yourself about the efficacy of vaccines. Reliable sources to do so are available on the Internet.
We have improved the mortality rate of children below 5 years primarily due to vaccines. So, do not fall prey to naysayers and never ignore vaccination. Do not worry about the side-effects. Even if it is a fever you will recover in a couple of days; but do not skip vaccination.
Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9L-X3GUCeL4