On Tuesday 10 August, Stellenbosch University (SU) will launch a vaccination site for its staff and members of the public who have registered on the official South African COVID-19 vaccination portal.

By enhancing access to vaccinations for University staff and the greater Stellenbosch community, the site is expected to relieve pressure on hospitals and clinics in the area.

“Vaccines are safe and save lives. I urge everyone eligible for the jab to get it – I got mine,” says SU Rector and Vice-Chancellor (VC) Prof Wim de Villiers.

The vaccination site, located in the easily accessible Lentelus clubhouse at the University’s soccer complex in Hammanshand Road, Stellenbosch, will be run in line with the national vaccine rollout guidelines, and in collaboration with Stellenbosch Hospital, an official vaccination centre.

Prof Nico Koopman, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Social Impact, Transformation and Personnel, says the site is the outcome of consistent efforts by SU’s Campus Health Service and other University role-players to advance access to vaccinations.

“The health and well-being of our staff and students is a top priority for the University – even more so during COVID-19. The establishment of a vaccination site attests to that commitment,” he says.

The University has 4 855 employees, including 1 353 at Tygerberg, where some 80% of staff were assisted through the Sisonke vaccination programme earlier this year. That is where the VC got his jab, administered by fourth-year medical student Jess Davies.

“While we welcome external options, we are glad that we will now also have this internal site for our staff and their families. It will benefit other educational institutions and the local community too, as well as our younger staff members and students once they are eligible to register for the vaccine.”

The SU vaccination site will start its programme using the Pfizer vaccine, and eligible individuals – currently those aged 35 and above – will be able to receive both their first and second doses at the site.

Vaccines will be allocated via the Western Cape Department of Health according to availability, and those administering the jabs will have been trained for this purpose under the national programme

Dr Pierre Viviers, senior director of SU’s Campus Health Service, says : “Our aim is to start administering at least 50 vaccinations a day. If we can get to 400 a day, that will be great.”

Viviers adds that the University plans to keep the site going with a view to using it for booster shots and other vaccinations in the future.

“This is a longer-term programme to enable continuous vaccination. We will then have the infrastructure in place for our site to be part of further vaccine programmes,” he says.

Urging eligible persons to use the site, Viviers says: “We know that vaccines are effective to curb the coronavirus disease and its complications, especially mortality. Vaccines are the quickest way to achieve herd immunity to limit the spread of the virus and mitigate the disaster it has caused.”