• Excitement over Covid-19 vaccine rollout in Soweto.
• Healthcare workers encouraged more people to be vaccinated to fight the virus.
• Healthcare workers are going to be vaccinated according to their susceptibility to being infected with Covid-19.

Soweto-based healthcare workers were jubilant after being vaccinated with the Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccine.

They queued at a hall at the Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital waiting for their jabs.

Gauteng Health MEC Dr Nomathemba Mokgethi expressed her appreciation for the hardworking individuals, who had been on the frontline of the pandemic since it reached South African shores in March 2020.

“I feel great because our healthcare workers have been sacrificing and nursing Covid-19 patients. For me, this day is long overdue. This is not the first time that we have been vaccinated. There are misconceptions about vaccination, and I hope people will trust government and get vaccinated,” Mokgethi said.

Lebogang Selahla, who was among the recipients, said she was excited about being vaccinated.

Selahla is a nurse at the hospital.

“We were trained about vaccination and we were told today that we are going to be vaccinated. I urge people to accept the vaccine. It is rare to be admitted if you have vaccinated,” said Selahla.

Another nurse, Refiloe Legoale, also expressed excitement about finally receiving the vaccine.

“It is a great milestone for us frontline workers. We are looking forward to everybody being vaccinated because it will help the nation. I encourage all my colleagues to take a step and be vaccinated. People must not doubt this vaccine because research has been done about it,” Legoale said.

Head of the Covid-19 programme at Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital, Dr Merika Tsitsi, said they were happy that the day had finally arrived.

Lebogang Selahla at the Chris Hani Baragwanth Hospital

Ntwaagae Seleka

“Many of us have been waiting for the vaccine for the past 11 months. It is appropriate that the healthcare workers have been prioritised. We are starting with 40 participants today [Wednesday]. We hope in the coming days we will vaccinate 400 to 600 participants per day.

“We have stratified participants according to their risks of acquiring Covid-19. We will first vaccinate those who are at the highest risk within the healthcare system,” Tsitsi said.

Did you know you can comment on this article? Subscribe to News24 and add your voice to the conversation.