As the COVID-19 vaccination of minors aged five to 11 years old begins on Friday, Feb. 4, National Children’s Hospital (NCH) chief Dr. Moriel DJ. Creencia has allayed the fears of parents whose children are about to get inoculated against the dreaded disease.

She reminded parents that they have been also vaccinated when they were still young and vaccine reactions are normal, adding that parents must not think that vaccines are fatal or will do any harm to their children.

“Isn’t it that, when we were still young, our parents also had us vaccinated and that is why, through the mercy of God, we are as healthy as we are because of those vaccines that were given to use when we were children,” Creencia said during a “Laging Handa” briefing on Thursday, Feb. 3.

“I hope, that us who have been inoculated when we were still young, will remove the fear in our minds that vaccines are bad for and that they are fatal. Of course, there are reactions, unexpected reactions that could happen but that only has a small percentage,” she continued.

Creencia said children aged five to 11 are expected to experience pain in the area where they were injected, which may also turn red; flu-like symptoms; and body pain, as experienced by minors aged 12 to 17 who have been earlier inoculated against COVID-19.

By getting inoculated against COVID-19, the NCH medical chief said children can once again enjoy social interactions and return to living their lives normally.

She noted that the social relationships of children are affected by the conduct of virtual classes.

Creencia stressed: “The end really justifies the means. We really need to vaccinate them, if we want our children to grow the way we want them to grow up as well-versed in everything, you know, able to relate with a lot of people, with every kind of people must be inoculated.”

“It's about really about time that younger children must get vaccinated so that we all can go out and go back to the new normal. We need to vaccinate these children,” she added.

Meanwhile, Creencia said a total of 1,467 minors aged five to 11 were registered by their parents to get inoculated at NCH as of 10 a.m. of Feb. 3.

The COVID-19 vaccine that will be used is Pfizer as it is, so far, the only vaccine granted by Food and Drug Administration (FDA) an emergency use authorization for children aged 5 to 11.