Vaccination against COVID-19 for health workers at various hospitals in the country continues on Wednesday, while further doses of the Sinovac vaccine are expected to give more frontliners protection against the disease, according to health authorities.
Vaccination started at East Avenue Medical Center in Quezon City this Wednesday with the arrival of their supply of CoronaVac vaccines from Sinovac.
As of 12 noon Wednesday, 144 EAMC staff have been vaccinated.
Health Secretary Francisco Duque III injected the hospital’s chief medical officer, Dr. Alfonso Nuñez, and a nurse Rosemarie Reyes at the “ceremonial vaccination” of the facility.
Nuñez wants vaccines to protect health care workers as they continue to save lives in this COVID-19 pandemic.
He also shared how he felt after being injected with the Sinovac vaccine.
“Balewala. Parang simpleng bakuna lang. Kagaya ng mga ibang bakunang na-receive ko sa aking buhay. Kaya hinihikayat namin ang lahat ng health care workers na samantalahin na itong Sinovac, iyong vaccine na available para mabigyang proteksyon ang lahat ng health care workers,” said Nuñez.
COVID-19 vaccination of frontliners continues
For Duque, the medical frontliners who led the vaccination against COVID-19 can be considered “influencers” amid doubts about it.
“Ang talagang influencers ay ang hospital chiefs. Gaya nina Dr. Sitoy Nuñez ng EAMC, Dr. Gap Legazpi ng PGH, si Dr. Famaran ng JNRMC, in fact pati FDA Director General Eric Domingo. So maganda ito, within the sector, iyong mga influencers sila ang mauuna,” said Duque.
Duque admitted that only 17 percent of the 3.4 million health care workers could be covered by the 600,000 doses of Sinovac that arrived recently so he said the government is doing everything to meet the need for vaccinations.
Duque added that it is possible that in the 3rd to 4th week of March, about 1 million doses of Sinovac will arrive.
About 150 health care workers of the National Kidney and Transplant Institute (NKTI) in Quezon City are expected to be vaccinated with the Sinovac vaccine this Wednesday.
According to Dr. Rosemari Liquete, executive director of NKTI, said this is the number of staff registered to get vaccinated.