Empty Covid-19 vaccine shots: CITF says action taken against one, probing two more

 

The Covid-19 Immunisation Task Force (CITF) is investigating multiple complaints of healthcare workers injecting blank shots of supposed Covid-19 vaccines.

CITF said the first case happened on July 17 at a drive-through vaccination at the Lapangan Terbang Sungai Petani army camp which was meant for armed forces personnel and their family members.

"An investigation into the incident was conducted by the armed forces where the individuals involved were called for an explanation.

"Disciplinary action has been taken against the vaccination personnel," it said in a statement.

The vaccination was conducted by the military clinic at the camp.

A video of the incident had gone viral on social media showing a woman's arm being jabbed but the contents of the syringe was not plunged into the arm.

CITF also acknowledged two other incidents at the Malaysia International Trade and Exhibition Centre (Mitec) and Bangi Avenue Convention Centre (BACC) Covid-19 vaccination centres.

The Mitec incident happened on July 17 and the complainant has lodged a police report.

The complainant, Tan Wing Sam, who was supposed to receive his first dose of Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine, shared on Facebook that he was injected with an empty syringe.

Tan said he had asked to record a video at the start of the process but was not allowed to do so.

"(The nurse) said no and I respected that," he said. However, what followed alarmed him.

"All she did was just jabbed in and pulled out without any motion of pushing the vaccine out from the syringe into my body.

"I confronted her and asked if she really did it properly and she replied, 'Should be ada lah, kalau you nak I bagi satu lagi'. How easy she can just offer me another jab right after the first one.

"Then she proceeded to get a new syringe and started all over again. This time with all the proper steps (I assumed) - withdrawing the vaccine from the vial, jabbing, pushing the vaccine into my arm, and withdrawing," he said.

Tan said he subsequently went to her supervisor to complain about what had transpired.

"The supervisor brought me back to the booth and asked the nurse again, and the nurse admitted what she did and she apologised," he said.

False sense of security

Tan also recorded the audio of the exchange with the supervisor, who also apologised.

"I'm raising this issue to everyone because it could be extremely dangerous if you didn't get vaccinated properly and you are so happy thinking that you got vaccinated.

"I wonder how many out there think they got vaccinated but actually just got the needle jabbing in and out," he said.

Meanwhile, the BACC incident also happened on July 17 and the service provider lodged a police report the next day. Ariff also lodged a police report this evening.

The complainant, who only wanted to be known as Ariff, said he was shown an empty bottle of Sinovac's Covid-19 vaccine.

“(The vaccinator) was explaining what Sinovac was about but the bottle was empty. There was no liquid inside.

“After I stared at it for a long time, the vaccinator immediately said ‘sorry sorry’ and put the bottle in a metal bowl,” he told Malaysiakini.

Ariff observed as the vaccinator reached for a new vaccine vial from an icebox.

“She showed me the vaccine again and this time, I saw there was liquid inside. She withdrew the vaccine into a syringe and showed the syringe to me.

“Then I got the injection,” he said.

Ariff noted that he was not allowed to record a video of the process. He added that no explanation was given as to why the first vial he was shown was empty.

CITF said police are investigating both incidents and the public will be informed of any updates.

"If wrongdoing is found, CITF will not hesitate to terminate the services of the personnel involved and also take action in accordance with the law."

It reiterated that in accordance with the standard operating procedure (SOP), all personnel administering the Covid-19 vaccine must show the filled syringe to recipients before they are injected.

"Recipients are urged to look at the syringe before and after the vaccination process to get the confidence that the administered dose is what it should be," it said. - Mkini