We need to be honest about effects of immunisation, says KJ

 

Health minister Khairy Jamaluddin says there are risks in any medical procedure, but the benefits from a booster shot are far greater than the risk of side effects.

PETALING JAYA: The health ministry needs to be more transparent about adverse events following immunisation (AEFI), its minister, Khairy Jamaluddin, said.

It also needs to be communicated clearly to the public, he admitted.

“(We have to) be honest about this that there is, of course, a risk in any medical procedure, but to reiterate that the risk is very, very small and the benefits from receiving a booster shot are far, far greater than the risk of side effects,” he told FMT to commemorate the first anniversary of the country’s vaccination programme.

AEFI is defined as any untoward medical occurrence after one is inoculated and which does not necessarily have a causal relationship with the usage of the vaccine.

According to the World Health Organization, an adverse event “may be any unfavourable or unintended sign, abnormal laboratory finding, symptom or disease”.

In calling for greater clarity on AEFI, a DAP MP recently urged the health ministry to respond to an appeal for a transparent probe by the parents of a boy who had died 18 days after being vaccinated.

Klang MP Charles Santiago said silence on the matter had raised suspicion and that the issue would only dissuade other parents from getting their children vaccinated against Covid-19.

In November, FMT reported that a dearth of official information was a reason for hesitancy in accepting booster jabs.

Khairy went on to say that many took a “wait-and-see” approach when it came to taking their booster shots, but was confident that the attitude towards a third jab would change for the better.

“I think that as we see the effectiveness of the booster shots in keeping people safe, especially from severe symptoms and death, more people will come forward to receive the boosters.”

He also said Malaysians should be proud of the country’s immunisation programme – the biggest such initiative in the nation’s history.

“It is one of the best in the world in terms of coverage, speed and effectiveness,” he said.

Khairy said Malaysians, on the whole, had come together to protect themselves and protect everyone else. And this was crucial in allowing the country to re-open its economy safely.

But he admitted that there were things that could be improved upon, including crowd control at vaccination centres.

“There were things that I think we could have communicated quicker too. But I think overall, it’s been well received and as I said, it’s one of the success stories of our pandemic management,” he said, noting the country’s “impressive” rate of having over 60% of its adult population inoculated with a third dose. - FMT