Depok City Health Agency head Novarita said the open positions were for medical school graduates, nurses (with nursing diplomas), administrative employees (with diplomas), call center employees, surveillance and health promotion officers (public health graduates), nutritionists and psychologists.

In addition to the degree requirements, applicants have to be registered healthcare workers or members of a certain profession, be ready to work on three-month contracts and be available for shifts on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. 

“The applications can be sent directly to rskarantina.umum@gmail.com,” said Novarita, adding the submission deadline was Tuesday at 9 a.m. Jakarta time.

On Sunday alone, Depok confirmed 63 new COVID-19 cases for a total of 7,701 cases. The city has recorded 214 fatalities.

Last month, the West Java administration sought people with medical backgrounds to volunteer to help mitigate the impacts of COVID-19 in Depok. 

“The health agency and Depok proposed the recruitment to improve the handling of COVID-19,” West Java Communications and Information Agency head Setiaji said in a statement on Oct. 14. The recruitment was open until Oct. 31. 

The required medical personnel were experienced pharmacists, radiographers, physiotherapists, teleconsultants, doctors, nurses, environmental sanitation workers, nutritionists, general physicians and laboratory technology workers.

Depok, along with Bogor and Bekasi, account for the majority of the new COVID-19 cases in West Java.

West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil said he had proposed the prioritization of Depok in future COVID-19 vaccination efforts.  

“I have proposed that Depok be among the regions getting the first vaccines. But it will still be done gradually, starting from the most vulnerable groups of people,” he said Oct. 13, as quoted by kompas.com. 

Presidential Regulation (Perpres) No. 99/2020 on vaccine procurement and vaccination signed on Oct. 5 details priority groups for vaccination: frontline workers, such as health workers and contact-tracing personnel; military and law enforcement personnel; religious and community leaders; authorities at the district, village, community and neighborhood unit levels; teachers at various levels of education; government officials and legislative council members and members of the Healthcare and Social Security Agency (BPJS Kesehatan). The vaccinations of these groups will be paid for by the government. 

According to Coordinating Economic Minister Airlangga Hartarto, the government has secured commitments for the delivery of 271.3 million doses of potential COVID-19 vaccines from China. Of that number, 30 million doses are expected to be ready by the end of this year. (nkn)

Editor’s note: This article is part of a public campaign by the COVID-19 task force to raise people’s awareness about the pandemic.