National vaccination hunt

This is good news, of course, but a breakthrough is a long way off. The problems that have accrued (or rather - have been painstakingly cultivated) around COVID-19 vaccination are so many that cleaning up the area resembles the task of an ancient hero. The insufficient number of vaccination centers and the lack of motivation - primarily for PCPs - to launch them (at least on a larger scale), the piling up of bureaucratic obstacles for pharmacies, the practically complete lack of information on the need for vaccination, not to mention the campaign to encourage it - these are just some of them. Of course, too few vaccines, which further increases the demand for them (it's not a well-known fact that unavailable goods are the most desirable, vaccines are no exception).

Finally, the digitization of the registration process, although, on the other hand, in the past two weeks, it was more common to hear that someone managed to get vaccinated (or at least sign up for a vaccination), simply "on a notebook", whether at a primary care clinic or a pharmacy. I myself referred a dozen (!) friends, living in one of the largest cities, to a pharmacy located on the outskirts of the metropolis, which did not provide slots in the open registration system at all until December 15, waiting for the announced changes, instead vaccinating according to the list of applicants kept in a notebook. Panto mail was proving to be a valuable channel of information and a much more effective tool than e-health solutions.

One may be concerned that the national vaccination hunt (copyright Dr. Pawel Grzesiowski, an expert on epidemic risks of the Supreme Medical Council) this season will not evolve into a National Immunization Program, i.e., a rationally implemented program to protect first and foremost those who are most at risk of severe COVID-19. Of course, all those who are willing should be vaccinated - also because the more vaccinated, the tighter the protection of the weakest. Provided that the vaccinated are not only also, but especially - the weakest. Neither the volume of doses that will arrive in a month or two, nor the passing of time, nor, finally, logistics, guarantee success. What we can and should do is to learn lessons for the future. So as not to repeat the mistakes and not to go down the same blind alley... no, not next year. Decisions on vaccination for the 2024/2025 season (not only against COVID-19 but also against influenza) will have to be made even before the current one expires for good.