No side effects of COVID-19 vaccine observed in Qatar: senior health official
In an interview with Qatar TV yesterday, Medical Director of Hamad General Hospital, Dr Yousef Al Maslamani confirmed that Qatar’s COVID-19 vaccination program has been going well and no side effects of the vaccine have been seen so far.
"The turnout among the targeted category of people to take the vaccine has increased considerably over the past few days, especially since many known personalities got the first shot of the vaccine,” the senior health official pointed out.
Referring to the concerns people may have regarding the vaccine, Dr Al Masalmani said, "It is normal that people may have doubts regarding any new invention or technology but the Ministry of Public Health depends on the approved scientific researches and studies and makes proper assessment of them accordingly.”
الدكتور يوسف المسلماني : جميع من اخذوا اللقاح في قطر لم تظهر عليهم أي أعراض جانبية #المسافة_الاجتماعية #تلفزيون_قطر pic.twitter.com/Agf3GBTR5h
— تلفزيون قطر (@QatarTelevision) December 28, 2020
He assured that the vaccine is safe and highly effective and there is no reason for people to be worried in this regard.
About the new strain of COVID-19, Dr Al Masalmani noted that scientifically it is well established that viruses mutate. While this new strain is not considered more deadly, it is more infectious. "According to the manufacturer of the COVID-19 vaccine, it is effective against the new strain of coronavirus as well," he underlined.
Dr Al Masalmani urged the public to continue to comply with precautionary and preventive measures against COVID-19, even if they have received the first dose of the vaccine. This is important as immunity is built within a week after the second dose.
He also mentioned that an update on the Ehteraz app is being planned at the moment to show when the user has already been vaccinated against COVID-19.
Qatar launched the first phase of its COVID-19 vaccination program on December 23, 2020.
During the first phase, priority will be given to people over 70 years old, adults in chronic care, and home care facilities, healthcare personnel most at risk of infection, and people over 16 years of age with severe chronic diseases.
Hundreds of individuals, including some top officials from Qatar's health sector and community dignitaries, have already received the first shot of the COVID-19 vaccine.
The COVID-19 vaccine requires a second shot 21 days after the first one.
The first phase of the campaign will run until January 31, 2021.
Qatar's vaccination strategy will enable everyone to be vaccinated against COVID-19 in 2021, but for now, with a limited quantity of vaccines, priority is a must for people most at risk from severe complications and death from the virus. This was announced at a press conference held by MoPH last week.
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