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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Prioritize inoculating unvaccinated first before giving booster shots -- expert

Prioritize inoculating unvaccinated first before giving booster shots -- expert

Published Nov 2, 2021 01:42 pm

An infectious disease expert on Tuesday, Nov. 2, said that while the vaccination rate in the Philippines is still low, it's better to prioritize inoculating those who have not yet received a single shot before giving booster shots.

(ALI VICOY / MANILA BULLETIN)

"Habang mababa pa ang nabakunahan sa isang bansa, mas effective itong bakuna na ginagamit sa mga di pa nabakunahan bago natin sila gamitin para sa booster dahil mas marami ang mape-prevent from being hospitalized kung unahin natin yung mga hindi pa nabakunahan versus gamitin itong mga vaccine for boosters (While vaccination rates are still low in a country, vaccinating those unvaccinated first is more effective than using COVID-19 shots as boosters because more people can be prevented from being hospitalized," Dr. Edsel Salvana said in a virtual briefing.

Salvana, who is also a member of the Department of Health Technical Advisory Group, stressed that it's important to vaccinate minors aged 12 to 17 first "before thinking about booster shots."

"Kasi alam naman natin na pwede pang mahawa ang mga bata at makahawa ng mas nakakarami and on top of that, pwede rin silang magkaroon ng severe , pero mas mababa yung risk compared sa mga taong mas matatanda or nasa vulnerable population (Because we know that children can be infected and infection others too and on top of that, they can also develop severe COVID-19, but the risk is lower compared to individuals who are older or in vulnerable populations)," he added.

"As long as ma-protect na natin yung vulnerable population natin, makakabuti pa rin na i-vaccinate natin yung mga bata para mas konti yung pwedeng madapuan ng virus (As long as we can protect our vulnerable population, it will be good for us to vaccinate children first so they can be less susceptible to the virus)."

The Philippines will start its nationwide rollout of COVID-19 vaccination among minors aged 12 to 17 on Nov. 3.

As of Nov. 1, 8.5 million Filipinos have already completed their second dose, while 9.4 million individuals have received at least one shot of COVID-19 vaccine.

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