THE Philippine Medical Association (PMA) is recommending that the national government designate national vaccination days to speed up the administration of COVID-19 shots to children aged 5 to 11 years, which is set to start on February 4.
PMA president Benito Atienza, at the regular “Laging Handa” public briefing, said setting specific dates for administering vaccines to youngsters would address potential issues on safety, convenience, and logistics.
He said national vaccination days will prevent unnecessary exposure for young people in crowded areas. He pointed out that without their own separate schedule, the children would have no option but to mingle with adults, including the unvaccinated and those getting first, second, or booster doses.
Likewise, a specified date would help parents adjust their plans to encourage better participation. He noted some parents could not bring their children to vaccination sites because they have to go to work.
Atienza also said it would be ideal to open bigger vaccination venues where additional facilities may be set up to ensure the comfort and safety of children as well as their parents and guardians.
Where possible, he said, TV screens can be put up to provide entertainment for youngsters while they wait for their turn.
Anticipating the usual side effects of the vaccines like fever and soreness on the injected arm, Atienza said those who received shots would be asked to stay on for observation for 15 to 30 minutes.
He said his group has coordinated with the Philippine Pediatric Society which will help in cases of children na tutulong sila with comorbidities, and additional coordination is being made with local government units where training hospitals are located.
Atienza said the PMA’s recommendations would be submitted to the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases.
A member of the National Immunization Technical Advisory Group urged the Department of Health to prioritize in next month’s rollout kids aged 5 to 11 years old, who have comorbidities, like it did with the age group 12-17.
“If you remember, for those 12 to 17 years old, we prioritized those with comorbidities or with underlying medical illnesses because we believe that they are more at risk from COVID-19,” said Dr. Mary Ann Bunyi, president of the Pediatric Infectious Disease Society of the Philippines.
Comorbidities include medical complexity, genetic or neurological conditions, metabolic/endocrine, cardiovascular disease, obesity, HIV infection, tuberculosis, chronic respiratory disease, and renal disorders.
Bunyi also said parents and guardians should expect adverse effects after their kids are inoculated but what is more important are benefits from the COVID-19 vaccines.
Cabinet Secretary and Inter-agency Task Force co-chairman Karlo Nograles said COVID-10 vaccines used in the country are halal-certified and similar to the ones used in other countries with predominantly-Muslim countries.
Nograles, also acting presidential spokesman, said the government is banking on the ability of local Muslim leaders to convince their constituents on the need to be vaccinated and protected against in COVID.
He said leaders in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) should set an example to their constituents to drive the demand and push for more vaccination in the region.
“We are not having problems that we see in vaccinating countries like our neighbors in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and other predominantly Muslim counties. We see no reason why it could not happen in the BARMM areas, but it really takes a lot of push and drive from local leaders there,” he said in an interview with CNN Philippines.
President Duterte, during his regular public address on Monday night, said some people in Muslim areas in Mindanao are refusing to be vaccinated because of religious or cultural beliefs.
BARMM has the lowest number of vaccines administered nationwide.
The National Vaccine Operations Center (NVOC) said that as of January 25, some 1.32 million vaccines have been administered in BARMM, including 796,259 as first dose. — With Gerard Naval and Jocelyn Montemayor
given a booster.
Nationwide, some 124.51 million doses have been administered, with around 59.98 million individuals having received their first dose, about 57.84 million fully vaccinated, and 6.68 million who received booster shots.
