Injecting COVID-19 vaccine

The committee is headed by Associate Professor Dr Nguyen Truong Son, Deputy Minister of Health.

Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long issued Decision No 1888/QĐ-BYT on April 15 establishing the steering committee, which comprises senior officials from the ministry and leaders from its departments along with leading local experts and scientists in diverse fields, from immunisation, infection, emergency resuscitation and intensive care to haematology, cardiology and neurology.

The committee is tasked with guiding medical establishments on screening, monitoring, and handling any adverse events following COVID-19 vaccinations and promptly assisting localities in dealing with all situations safely.

According to Assoc. Prof. Dr Luong Ngoc Khue, Director of the Medical Examination and Treatment Department at the MoH and deputy head of the committee, a vaccination safety system has been set up nationwide.

Committee members work online and stand ready to reply to any concerns regarding the vaccination of health workers, the official said.

According to a report from the National Expanded Programme on Immunisation, released on April 27, a record 50,104 people were inoculated on April 26.

Nearly 260,000 people - mostly frontline workers and medical staff - in 42 cities and provinces have been injected with the AstraZeneca vaccine since the national vaccination drive began on March 8.

No incidents of rare blood clots have been reported so far, while typical reactions (tiredness, mild fever, muscle pains, etc.) were reported in about 30 percent of people - even lower than the advisory information from the manufacturer and reports from European authorities.

Vietnam currently has nearly 1 million doses of AstraZeneca from the manufacturer and also from the COVAX Facility, along with 1,000 doses of the Sputnik V vaccine, a gift from Russia./ VNA