Dulas, a British solar refrigeration manufacturer, has completed a training program in Myanmar for Ministry of Health technicians as part of its supply package of its World Health Organization accredited VC200 Solar Direct Drive (SDD) vaccine refrigerators. The program was designed to help healthcare workers learn about the technology of the refrigerators to make sure vaccines are kept at optimum temperatures.
In the last 16 years, Myanmar has invested over $156.5 million in vaccination programs. However, there is a high demand for cold-chain infrastructure to keep the vaccines from overheating and becoming unusable.
Some of Myanmar’s locations are too remote to have normal refrigeration techniques. Dulas created a solution that uses off-grid, energy efficient technology using a renewable energy source. The company has supplied Myanmar with 25 VC200 SDD solar powered vaccine refrigerators that will, in the long run, save children’s lives and protect the health of citizens who will have access to immunizations.
Dulas VC200 SDD is a Hot Zone Rated and WHO pre-qualified solar direct vaccine refrigerator. It has a 132-liter vaccine storage capacity with the option to add a Solar Socket function that allows healthcare workers to charge cell phones or monitor temperatures while also providing a light source.
The training that healthcare workers received with the solar-powered refrigerators was led by the country’s Ministry of Health to achieve 100% immunization throughout the country. Over a five-day period, the training helped provide an understanding of issues related to SDD technology and vaccine storage. Technicians received first-hand practical experience in the training and experienced all stages required to install and maintain vaccine refrigerators.
“Helping on the ground is embedded in Dulas’ ethos. We wanted to go above and beyond manufacture and supply of our solar vaccine refrigerators and extend our expertise in the area to the health technicians who rely on our products day to day to effectively administer vaccinations to the Myanmar population,” said Catherine McLennan, account manager at Dulas. “It was an exciting time to be in Myanmar. The participants were enthusiastic about the training and the skills that they could learn from it. By the end of the session, everyone was well-versed in the technical and practical aspects of installation and aftercare of Dulas’s solar refrigerators.”
