Slow but steady.

This was how a nursing official described the turnout of Tobago Regional Health Authority (TRHA) workers to be vaccinated on Friday at the Scarborough General Hospital and Magdalena Grand Beach and Golf Resort, Lowlands.

“I really think workers are taking the vaccine. I really think so,” she said.

A source told Newsday by noon, only 15 workers had showed up for their first dose of the vaccine at the hospital. Six got their second jab.

The THA Division of Health, Wellness and Family Development has been on a heightened drive to encourage healthcare workers – especially those on the frontline of the pandemic – to take the vaccine.

But there has been a high level of vaccine hesitancy among health care workers on the island.

At the post-executive council news conference on July 21, Chief Secretary Ancil Dennis alluded to the situation, saying he was disappointed with the number of Tobago healthcare workers presenting themselves for covid19 vaccines.

Dennis said approximately 53 per cent have received jabs to date. They were prioritised for vaccines since Tobago received its first shipment of Oxford-AstraZeneca in February.

At the briefing, Dennis urged health workers to come forward.

“You all are the most at risk. There is nobody more exposed to the virus than you, whether you are working at the hospital or health centre,” he had said.

The division will host a covid19 vaccination drive-through on Saturday at the car park of the Shaw Park Cultural Complex from 8 am-4pm to encourage workers to take the vaccine.

The initiative, which runs for a week, ends on August 6.