Saphan Hin vaccination centre closed after 14 months of relentless work

Yesterday (May 28), Phuket Vice Governor Pichet Pananponig presided over the ceremony to officially close the vaccination centre at the 4000-seat Indoor Sports Stadium at Saphan Hin. 

At the ceremony, V/Gov Pichet was joined by Dr Supalak Laongpetch and Dr Witita Jang-iam, Deputy Directors at Vachira Phuket Hospital coordinating the mass vaccinations at Saphan Hin, as well as fellow officials from various government agencies, volunteers and other involved in the daily operations of the center. The closing event was complete with awarding certificates to government agencies and the private sector participating in the inoculation campaign.

V/Gov Pichet reminded that the mass vaccination started in Phuket on April 1, 2021. The process had to be swift as Phuket had to reach 70% vaccination level by July 1, the key criteria for launching the Phuket Sandbox project, the first step along the road to re-opening the country for international visitors.

“The opening and operation of the vaccination centres in Phuket received cooperation from all sectors, which helped each other in every vaccination centre. May everyone keep it in their memory and be proud of the job done to help fellow human beings. Let’s applaud ourselves for participating in this mission,” V/Gov Pichet on the last day of operation of the centre at Sapan Hin. 

Speaking at the ceremony on May 28, Dr Witita Jang-iam said that the centre had been performing vaccinations for 1 year, 1 month and 28 days in a row, having provided 600,000 vaccine shots. The center served around 1,400 people per day on average, yet on some most busy days the number could exceed 10,000. Some 1,500 people participated in the join inoculation effort.

Dr. Witita said, that as of May 28, 2022, the vaccination progress reached on the island was as follows:

• 1 injection – 94.5%;
• 2 injections – 90.22%;
• 3 injections – 63.79%;
• 4 injections – 38.61%.

For the needs of rapid mass vaccinations five centers had been open in Phuket, namely at Saphan Hin (Phuket Town); Jungceylon Mall (Patong); Terminal X Building of the Phuket International Airport; Angsana Laguna Phuket (Cherng Talay); The Orchid Hotel (Karon). With the situation gradually improving, officials started closing them one by one. Of those, only the one at Phuket International Airport remains in operation.

"Today [May 28] is the last day of work for the Saphan Hin vaccination center. We are vaccinating students aged 5-11 years providing them with their second injections. After this, the Saphan Hin vaccination center will be closed. Vaccination will be provided at hospital and community health centres,” Dr. Witita said.

It is understood that the task of rapid mass vaccination in Phuket had been successfully completed, further work does not require designated vaccination centres, though the one at Phuket International Airport still remains in operation. 

“I was acting as the Director of the Saphan Hin Phuket Vaccination Center since it opened and until today, the closing day. I feel proud to be the person who managed the vaccination process. Those were historical times as I had never coordinated so many vaccinations before. It was an experience and a chance to learn a lot of things in one year. And I say my thank you to all the agencies who helped with the vaccination campaign and all the participating sectors, including the government, the private sector and the volunteers who helped immensely,” Dr. Witita said. 

There are still people in Phuket who have not received their third and fourth vaccine injections yet, Dr. Witita said. They are all invited to register for their shots and receive the vaccines at their nearest hospitals and health centres or even at home as medical personnel provide this service to people with mobility issues such as the elderly and people with specific medical conditions. 

Dr. Witita also reminded that vaccination does not mean people should lower their guard. New strains of COVID-19 keep emerging around the world, thus it is still important to follow the basic personal protection measures such as wearing masks, washing hands often, maintaining social distance and never ignoring flu-like symptoms.
“If you have symptoms, you need to do an ATK test," said Dr Witita.