Over 500 people get COVID-19 vaccine shots in five Dhaka hospitals

As many as 541 people have been vaccinated against the coronavirus in five hospitals in Dhaka on Thursday after 26 people were inoculated on the first day of the mass immunisation campaign in Bangladesh.

Senior Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 28 Jan 2021, 07:01 AM
Updated : 28 Jan 2021, 02:30 PM

The vaccination programme on Day 2 kicked off at 9am with health workers receiving the shots, said ABM Khurshid Alam, the director-general of the health directorate.

Four booths have been set up each at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, Dhaka Medical College Hospital, Mugda Medical College and Hospital and Kurmitola General Hospital and one at Kuwait Bangladesh Friendship Government Hospital, Alam told bdnews24.com.

'A total of 500 health workers were expected to be vaccinated in these hospitals, but the number reached at 541 in the afternoon."

Prof Kanak Kanti Barua, former communications minister Syed Abul Hossain, State Minister for ICT Zunaid Ahmed Palak and Health Secretary Md Abdul Mannan were among the others who got the jab.

Palak is the first government minister to be vaccinated.

A total of 198 people were vaccinated at the BSMMU, 120 at DMCH, 65 at Mugda Medical College and Hospital, 100 at Kurmitola General Hospital and 58 at Kuwait Bangladesh Friendship Government Hospital.

"Vaccine shots are being administered to people in a festive atmosphere. Many important people are receiving COVID-19 vaccine shots," Health Minister Zahid Maleque said during a visit to a booth to oversee the immunisation campaign at BSMMU.

"The people who have received vaccine jabs are doing well. We have had no report of side effects from the vaccine yet."

"Many of our hospital staff are interested in taking the shot as there has been no report of side effects. But people are afraid of the vaccine due to the rumours and misinformation. We hope they will soon grow interest to receive the vaccine doses," said Prof Ahmedul Kabir, the principal of Mugda Medical College and Hospital.

Bangladesh started its immunisation campaign with the inoculation of a nurse at Kurmitola General Hospital on Wednesday. A total of 26 people were vaccinated on the day, including representatives from different classes and professions.

Bangladesh is using COVISHIELD, the vaccine developed by the UK’s University of Oxford and Anglo-Swedish drug maker AstraZeneca, imported from the Serum Institute of India. The vaccine has been proved safe and efficient in trials. Everyone is required to take two doses of the vaccine within a window of eight weeks.

Since no clinical trials of the vaccine were held in Bangladesh, the authorities will vaccinate a limited number of people in five hospitals across Dhaka and observe them following the World Health Organization protocol.

The mass vaccination will begin on Feb 7 if everything goes according to plan.