Grandwest has become the first approved Covid-19 workplace vaccination site in the Western Cape hospitality and leisure industry. It is the third in the country.
The Sun International-owned complex, along with its Sun City and Wild Coast Sun resorts, are among the industry’s first to be inspected and approved by the Department of Health.
The site will be in GrandWest’s Market Hall, adjacent to the Grand Arena, and will open between 9am and 3pm every Monday, Wednesday and Friday until the first week of October.
The GrandWest vaccination programme will begin on Monday, August 16.
The site will have five vaccinators working in five cubicles. The aim is to administer around 250 Pfizer vaccinations a day in the first week. A portion of the daily vaccines will be reserved for GrandWest staff until they have all been immunised. The remaining daily shots will be available to the public.
GrandWest general manager Mervyn Naidoo said that by partnering with the Department of Health, it could offer vaccines to a far greater number of people.
Naidoo said the property hoped to administer about 8 000 vaccines over the next six to seven weeks.
“As more suburban facilities make their premises available for vaccinations, so we may find the pressure eases. We will be guided in this by the Department of Health," he said.
The vaccination centre will operate as a secondary site for the nearby Ruiterwacht Clinic. Doctors and medical staff from the on-site clinic will be responsible for medical oversight and provision of the vaccines. GrandWest will be responsible for the administration of the site, which includes managing queues, screening and registrations.
Representatives from the Department of Health will be on hand, although GrandWest is confident the process will be seamless.
“We may be the first hospitality and leisure industry vaccination site to open in the province, but we hope we will soon be overtaken by many more. Our industry has been particularly hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, and if we don’t reach critical mass with the vaccination roll-out, thousands of jobs could be lost,” Naidoo said.
To be eligible for the vaccination, people should have a valid ID and register on the national EVDS website.
Visitors can access the site from the front entrance to GrandWest or the back of Welcome Centre at the Grand Arena entrance.