The Croatian Public Health Institute (HZJZ) has provided all stakeholders in the COVID-19 vaccination programme with additional detailed instructions on the preparation, organisation and implementation of vaccination in accordance with the national vaccination plan.

In a statement issued on its website on Saturday, the HZJZ said that the purpose of the additional instructions was to avoid “any ambiguities, irregularities, inconsistencies or misuse” regarding the vaccination process following several recent cases that “cast a shadow” on the efficiency of the Croatian public health system in combating the coronavirus pandemic.

The HZJZ said that the statement was prompted by increasing queries from the public and media about the vaccination programme, explaining the circumstances in which it is justified to vaccinate people who do not belong to priority groups.

It said that under the national vaccination plan the first priority group includes health workers and care home residents and staff, while the vaccination of elderly people and people with chronic diseases is envisaged for the second phase.

The main goal in the fight against COVID-19 is to inoculate risk groups as soon as possible and then all people aged 18 and over. “We should do all we can to reduce or avoid overlapping taking into account the fact that sometimes it is more important to vaccinate high-risk persons from the second priority group than young and healthy persons from the first priority group,” the HZJZ said.

The HZJZ noted that all adult citizens are entitled to free vaccination and that stakeholders in the vaccination process are doing their best to obtain sufficient quantities of vaccine and ensure efficient health care. It said it expects over 600,000 doses of vaccine by the end of March.

It also mentioned cases when people scheduled for vaccination do not show up or cannot get vaccinated for medical reasons. In such situations it is reasonable and justifiable, both economically and from the point of view of health care, to vaccinate people who do not belong to any of the priority groups, the HZJZ said. “Discarding vaccines in such situations constitutes irreparable damage.”