Through these short conversations, we try to understand what our customers think about us. Today, we are going to Afghanistan to meet M. Ahmad Tariq Sadiqzada, EPI technician. The Expanded Programme on Immunization in Afghanistan was initiated in 1978 to prioritize immunization across the population by the Ministry of Public Health. The national EPI structure manages and implements immunization services
with the collaboration of international partners. The EPI objectives are the expansion of health centers services, training of vaccinators, development/updates of routine immunization plan, etc.

1. Could you explain what your activities consist of?

I’m Ahmad Tariq and I’m a technician of the EPI for the West region of Afghanistan, the Herat province. I’m responsible for the maintenance, installation and data monitoring of the cold chain equipment, and I have installed more than 100 Solar Direct Drive refrigerators in my region. The EPI is working on improving access to immunization services across the country.

2. Why is there a need for cold storage?

We need cold storage devices to store our vaccines in the healthcare facilities and we need transport boxes for our vaccination campaigns. The vaccines we store require cold temperature storage between 2°C to 8°C. This is important to keep the efficacy of our vaccines.

3. Which products did you buy from B Medical Systems? For which purpose?

We have more than 2000 Solar Direct Drive Refrigerators and combined refrigerators and Icepacks freezers all across the country. We store the following vaccines: OPV, PCV, Rota and all vaccines used in the routine immunization.

4. What are the features that you liked the most? Could you please talk about the performance of the devices?

I appreciate the fact that they are solar powered. It makes it very easy to store vaccine in our country which does not have permanent electricity. Vaccinators do not need to worry about the status of the vaccines when they are not on site.

5. How are you using B Medical Systems’ products and how do they benefit your institution?

The electricity is very unstable in Afghanistan. During a day, it can happen that we have 5-6 hours with no electricity. The vaccine refrigerators we have are solar powered, which enable us to keep our operations up and prevent that our vaccines are damaged due to a lack of power.

6. Have you found in B Medical Systems a trustworthy partner?

This is a great and wonderful company and we just want to say thank you!

7. How did you learn about B Medical Systems?

We know about B Medical Systems and previously Dometic from the procurement organisation who helped us acquire the devices

8. How long have you been a B Medical Systems customer?

Since 2003.

9. Are you satisfied with the equipment?

Yes, we have seen the effectiveness of this equipment and we are very thankful to B Medical Systems.

10. Would you recommend B Medical Systems to your peers?

Yes, sure. We recommend other countries to use products from B Medical Systems. I can assure them they will have a reliable vaccine storage in their facilities.

 

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