Government issuing new yellow fever cards

What you need to know:

  • For the time being, Dr Jackson Amone, the ministry’s Acting Commissioner Clinical Services, said both the old and new cards will be accepted at the airport for those travelling out of the country, but they expect to phase out the old ones shortly.
  • At the beginning of 2016, the Ministry of Health issued new guidelines requiring Ugandans and other travellers to the country from high risk yellow fever countries to present a valid immunisation certificate against the disease to be allowed out and into the country, respectively.

KAMPALA: The Ministry of Health has started issuing new standardised yellow fever vaccination cards as a measure undertaken to prevent forgeries.
Previously, the different health centres administering vaccines for the viral haemorrhagic disease issued different types of the vaccination cards.
Dr Diana Atwine, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health told Saturday Monitor that they have issued a total of 50,000 copies of the vaccination cards to the 21 health facilities with whom they partnered and accredited to administer the yellow fever vaccine.
“Initially, these cards will be free because the ministry gave them free of charge to these health centres. So when they are finished, the centres will have to pay money before the supplier prints them others,” Dr Atwine said.

Where to get them
The assessed and accredited facilities include KCCA Clinic Kampala, Mengo Hospital, Nakasero Hospital, St Catherine Hospital, Norvik Hospital, Kitante Medical Centre, Span Medicare, Victoria Hospital, Victoria Medical Centre, Airport Medical Centre Entebbe, Rugarama Hospital, Kabale, and Kabale Regional Referral Hospital.
Other include; Rushoroza Health Centre IV, Tororo Hospital in Tororo, Masafu Hospital Busia, City Medicals Kampala, Doctors Hospital Sseguku, Kampala, International Medical Centre Kampala, Kampala Medical Chambers Kampala, Le Memorial Medical Services Kampala and Jabez Vaccinations Kampala.
For the time being, Dr Jackson Amone, the ministry’s Acting Commissioner Clinical Services, said both the old and new cards will be accepted at the airport for those travelling out of the country, but they expect to phase out the old ones shortly.

Background
At the beginning of 2016, the Ministry of Health issued new guidelines requiring Ugandans and other travellers to the country from high risk yellow fever countries to present a valid immunisation certificate against the disease to be allowed out and into the country, respectively.
The move followed the outbreak of the epidemic disease in Uganda and some other African countries.