SHANGHAI residents traveling abroad for work and study began receiving free COVID-19 vaccinations from yesterday at 17 health centers across the city.

Seven people were vaccinated at theDapuqiaoSubdistrictNeighborhood Health Center in Huangpu District. They had booked for the service on their mobile phone appJiankangyunand visited the center with their passport, valid visa, airline ticket, ID card, andhukou or residence permit.

Gao Xue, an MBA student atFudanUniversity, is going to Switzerland as an exchange student on February 2.

“I bought the air ticket a long time ago and kept checking with mysubdistrictmany times about the date for vaccination,” she said. “Fortunately, it started today.”

After being vaccinated, she was told to drink more water, take more rest and not to take a shower for 24 hours. “It is very similar to the other vaccines,” Gaosaid.

ZhangHaode, another vaccine recipient,said he felt at ease by the jab. He is flying to Canada on February 4 to visit his elderly mother. He was worried about her because they hadn’t seen each other for a long time due to the pandemic.

After learning that the vaccination was available for residents planning to travel abroad before February 12, he booked his spot on the app early yesterday. Once his reservation was confirmed, he bought his plane ticket.

Zhang left the center 30 minutes after receiving his vaccination.

GaoJiabao, chief of the center’s health care department, said that an ambulance was kept on standby for those feeling uncomfortable after getting the shot to transfer them to the hospital.

By early yesterday, around 100 people had registered for the vaccination in Dapuqiao center, Gao said. “Now 35 people can be injected per day from 1pm to 5pm on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

“Three doctors can vaccinate 15 people per hour on average, so 50 people getting the jab in one day is achievable,” she said. “Over the following days, more vacancies are likely to be released.”

After 14 days, those who received the first jab will need another shot to develop antibodies. The vaccine is expected to work for at least six months.

The vaccine is not yet available forexpatriatesworking or living in the city. Inquiries can be made at 12320, the city’s healthhotline.

As of Monday, 326,000 people at high risk in the city, including medical workers, customs staff who handle imported cold-chain products and police, had received the vaccine with no serious adverse reactions reported, officials said.