A pharmacist attached to the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPH) was the first of dozens of frontline healthcare workers who were inoculated with the Oxford AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine yesterday, almost one year after the first case of COVID-19 was confirmed in Guyana.
The vaccination drive came one day after the Government of Barbados donated 3,000 doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine to Guyana. Approximately 1,500 healthcare workers are expected to be vaccinated with the double-dose vaccine in the coming days. Their second dose will be administered in eight to twelve weeks. Director of Medical and Professional Services Dr Fawcett Jeffrey said there are around 300 frontline healthcare workers attached to the GPH and the infectious diseases hospital and by the end of the day they should have all received their first dose of the vaccine.
Pharmacist Brinnet Bernarai received her first dose of the vaccine yesterday shortly after 9 am in the presence of senior health officials including Minister of Health Dr Frank Anthony, who said that the first inoculation against COVID-19 is a historic moment as it signals the beginning of the end of the pandemic.
He noted that the government’s intention is to inoculate at least 80 per cent of the Guyanese adult population by the end of 2021 so as to achieve herd immunity. He said that the Ministry is extremely pleased to initiate the process noting that by the end of the month they should be receiving more vaccines, with the 20,000 doses of Sinopharm vaccine promised by China, to arrive in March.
Anthony stated that it has been decided to kick-start vaccination at the GPH because from the beginning of the pandemic it has been the epicentre of the fight against COVID-19. He added that patients with the most severe form of the virus were taken to the GPH until about two months ago when all severe patients were taken to the infectious diseases hospital at Liliendaal. Despite this, he said, many persons still go to the GPH and healthcare workers still have to screen patients to see whether or not they are infected with COVID-19, so exposure risk is still very high at the hospital.
“Therefore we thought it fit that the staff here be the first ones that we start with but very shortly we will be rolling out these vaccines to regional hospitals,” he noted.
The Minister went on to say now that vaccination is on the horizon, the Ministry will be ramping up education on the various vaccinations so persons can understand how vaccines work and to try to dispel any negativity towards COVID-19 vaccination as there are many persons in Guyana who are unsure of whether or not they should be inoculated.
“Around the world this is a very scarce commodity so once we get it we want to ensure that we can get it into the arms of people as quickly as possible,” he said.
COVID-19 vaccinations are not mandatory.
With vaccines expected from COVAX later this month, Anthony informed that by early March all healthcare workers in the public and private sector should receive their first dose of the vaccine. There are at least 22,000 health care workers in Guyana, according to the minister.
COVAX has promised to supply Guyana with 104,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine. He added that more doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine will be made available through other bilateral arrangements, noting that discussions are currently ongoing regarding the Sputnik V vaccine from Russia.
Meanwhile, Anthony disclosed that a National Group has been established to monitor for possible side effects in persons who have been vaccinated. He said that persons will have to report to the group if they are experiencing any adverse side effects and the group will do their best to assist. However, he pointed out that healthcare workers administering the vaccinations will explain what side effects to expect and what to do if those side effects are adverse. He noted that according to protocols, a person will have to wait 15 to 20 minutes before leaving the premises.
The minister said that they have not received any report of major side effects originating from the AstraZeneca vaccine and millions of doses have already been administered. However, he assured they will continue to monitor the situation to see if there are any major developments relating to the AstraZeneca vaccine and possible side effects.
When all healthcare workers are vaccinated, the elderly and persons with comorbidities will be inoculated followed by members of the joint services. More than 150 persons were vaccinated yesterday, according to Anthony’s latest update.
