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May 31, 2021 – In preparation of the vaccine roll-out for the A4 priority group, the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Department of Health (DOH) collaborated in the conduct of a Town Hall Meeting of education frontliners on the government’s vaccination program held last May 18.

DepEd Task Force COVID-19 (DTFC) Chairperson and Undersecretary for Administration Alain Del Pascua shared the Department’s plan to further heighten the vaccination campaign during the virtual town hall meeting intended for DepEd’s school health personnel nationwide.

“Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones will soon issue a memorandum that will provide details as to how our personnel can effectively engage for the implementation of the vaccination program. “This town hall as well as your close involvement is an essential activity that will support our schools in complying with the said memorandum,” Usec. Pascua said.

Presided by medical experts, the meeting shed light on the national vaccination deployment plan, vaccine development, selection, and approval process. It also addressed public concerns on vaccine acceptance and how school health personnel and teachers can participate in communicating key messages of the immunization program.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III encouraged the participants to join the vaccine cluster in forwarding the right information on vaccines to the public.

“Nakasalalay sa tagumpay ng bakuna laban sa COVID-19 ang tiwala ng ating mamamayan sa halaga ng bakuna bilang instrumento ng pagpapanatili ng magandang antas ng pampublikong kalusugan,” Sec. Duque said.

Meanwhile, Director Lope B. Santos III of the Bureau of Learner Support Services (BLSS) urged school health personnel to remain updated on other meetings on the pipeline.

“Meron pa po tayong mga susunod na virtual workshops and meetings upang mas maabot natin ang lahat ng mga DepEd personnel at makatulong pa tayo sa pagbabahagi ng mga kaalaman tungkol sa bakuna kontra COVID-19,” Dir. Santos said in his closing statement.

Various national and local webinars will also be conducted as part of the Department’s Vacc2School: Ligtas na Bakuna para sa Balik-Eskwela campaign, which aims to inform and engage the stakeholders in the promotion of vaccination and other related policies to mitigate COVID-19.

The town hall for the Department’s school health personnel was also in collaboration with the Department of Health, Department of Science and Technology and the Philippine Society for Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (PSMID), Explain, Explain, Explain by the Philippine Information Agency (PIA), and the National Task Force on COVID-19.

A recording of the town hall meeting will be uploaded in DepEd Learning Management System (LMS), allowing personnel to watch the meeting at their own pace and convenience.

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