Over 10,000 frontline medical workers receive Covid-19 vaccine

On March 13, more 4,793 medical and other frontline workers were administered the Covid-19 vaccine, raising the tally of recipients to 10,041.

Malie Nguyen

Dieuhuong270198@gmail.com March 14, 2021 | 14:20

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Specifically, the vaccine has been given to 6,287 people in Hai Duong, Hanoi (163), Hung Yen (840), Bac Ninh (312), Bac Giang (823), Hai Phong (205), HCMC (774), Gia Lai (200), Long An (193), Danang (117), Hoa Binh (32) and Khanh Hoa (95), Vnexpress reported.

In particular, Hai Duong, Vietnam’s biggest Covid-19 hotspot has given priority of inoculation for medical staff at 6 districts namely Hai Duong city and districts of Cam Giang, Chi Linh, Nam Sach, Kinh Mon, and Nam Thanh. Those in the remaining districts will be injected from March 17.

The vaccine recipients include medical workers directly treating Covid-19 patients, those involve in taking samples, testing, contact tracing, and members of Covid-19 community groups.

The vaccine used in the ongoing vaccination rollout in Vietnam is developed and manufactured by the British-Swedish firm AstraZeneca in collaboration with Oxford University. Photo: Vnexpress

According to quick reports by the vaccination sites, no serious reactions were detected on recipients on March 13. Previously, 12 people developed severe reactions, reactions at 2-3 levels after the injection such as urticaria, pruritus, angioedema at the injection site, and breathing difficulty.

In detail, HCMC Hospital for Tropical Diseases recorded 6 people experiencing reactions, Hai Phong Center for Disease Control (4), Gia Lai Field Hospital (1). All of them are now in stable health conditions.

The Health Ministry on March 13 required HCMC, Hai Phong, and Gia Lai to investigate, evaluate and conclude the causes of severe complications after the Covid-19 vaccination.

Vaccine recipients were asked to provide their health situation, immunization history, and types of medicine they have recently used.

Vaccine used in the ongoing vaccination rollout in Vietnam is developed and manufactured by the British-Swedish firm AstraZeneca in collaboration with Oxford University. The first batch of 117,600 vaccine doses arrived in Vietnam on February 24. An additional 5 million doses from global vaccine access mechanism Covax, UNICEF, and Vietnam Vaccine Joint Stock Company’s purchasing contract are expected to arrive in March and April.

One frontline worker in Ho Chi Minh city receives the vaccine. Photo: Vnexpress.

Vietnam is also negotiating with the U.S.’s Pfizer and Moderna and other vaccine manufacturers in Russia and China.

AstraZeneca vaccine has been given to residents in more than 50 countries in the world. Nine European nations including Denmark, Iceland, and Norway have suspended the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine following reports of severe cases of blood clots in people who have been injected with it, the AFP reported.

Thailand also followed the move, delaying its rollout program.

However, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the U.K.’s regulatory body have said that there is no indication that vaccination is linked to thromboembolic events.

The vaccine’s benefits continue to outweigh its risks and the vaccine can continue to be administered while the investigation of cases of thromboembolic events is ongoing, the EMA said.

There has not been a single case of blood clots reported in Vietnam; hence, it will continue its vaccine rollout.

According to AstraZeneca, the vaccine is 76 percent effective, increasing to 81 percent after the second shot.

Vietnam has so far reported 2,553 Covid-19 cases, including 1,594 domestically-transmitted cases.

The Treatment Sub-committee said that 2,086 patients have been declared clear of the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 so far, and the fatalities remained at 35.

Among the active patients undergoing treatment, 48 tested negative for the virus once, 48 twice, and 91 thrice.

As many as 39,613 people who had close contact with confirmed COVID-19 patients or entered Vietnam from pandemic-hit regions are being quarantined across the country, including 503 in hospitals, 16,056 in other establishments, and 23,054 at home.