No vaccines for hospital cleaners, teachers, journos in first phase

 

Only frontliners directly involved with patient treatment, laboratory work, premise disinfection and security will get vaccinated in first phase.

PETALING JAYA: Hospital cleaners, teachers and journalists are not included in the first phase of the national immunisation programme, the health ministry said today.

Dr Hanif Zailani, a public health expert from the ministry’s disease control division, said there is not enough supply of the Covid-19 vaccine for these individuals, although he acknowledged that they too were frontliners.

In an engagement session with the media, he said the first phase of vaccinations will focus on frontliners directly involved with patient treatment, laboratory work, premise disinfection and security.

“Hospital janitors are important, they are frontliners. But even among our frontliners we have to give (certain frontliners) the priority,” he said, adding that those involved in disinfections referred to those in the Fire and Rescue Department.

Hanif added that the elderly were still next in line to get vaccinated, after frontliners, since they belong to the high-risk group.

Dr Kalaiarasu Peariasamy, director of the health ministry’s Institute for Clinical Research, said district health offices will note the medical history of individuals before administering the vaccines in order to avoid complications.

Asked on the possibility of severe side effects and complications from the jabs, he said individuals who would have allergic reactions (or anaphylaxis) to the vaccine should already be aware based on their medical history.

“They must inform the medical practitioners who are going to carry out the vaccination. If they don’t inform them and they’re exposed to the risk of anaphylaxis, this will lead to a situation where we then have to control it,” he said.

Meanwhile, health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said the health ministry would deploy mobile units to administer vaccines to those who are bedridden and even those in homes for the elderly, so that they do not have to head over to vaccination centres themselves.

He added that the ministry was already doing this for vulnerable populations like those from the Orang Asli villages and longhouses.

“What’s important is for us to look into their history and status, whether they are able to accept the vaccine. If they’re not, we will identify them as such.”

Noor Hisham also dismissed concerns that there might be a black market for Covid-19 vaccines, saying only governments are allowed to procure the supply for now.

He added that since vaccines were free and not commercialised, there was no competition between the public and private healthcare sector and little likelihood for a black market for it. - FMT