One down, one to go.
Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley received his first shot of the Sinopharm vaccine yesterday at the Diego Martin Health Centre.
In a promotional video on the Prime Minister’s official Facebookpage afterwards, Rowley called on citizens to take the vaccine.
“I never expected that when we set about to build this facility, that it would be used in a pandemic and that I would be here to be vaccinated,” Rowley said in the short clip.
“COVID-19 is with us and in having to live with it, we are fighting it.
“The one thing that we know by the evidence we have here and around the world is that this virus is being suppressed by the vaccination programme.”
He added, “A number of vaccines have been approved for use and the reports are that populations that are vaccinated, are protected insofar that people are responding better.”
The Prime Minister was originally expected to receive his first jab back in April but was thrown off that schedule when he tested positive for COVID-19 just before he was to take the jab.
Yesterday, Rowley said taking the vaccine reduced the need for hospitalisation and reduced the impact of the virus and eliminated death.
“Those benefits are worth having the population vaccinated,” he said.
Nurse Sookchand shows Prime Minister dR keith Rowley his vaccination card after the PM received the Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine at the Diego Martin Health Centre, yesterday.
OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER
Rowley said that unvaccinated populations are “still being ravaged” by the virus.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) had initially directed all recovered COVID-19 patients to wait a period of six months before getting the vaccine, but in May that was reduced to three months.
At that time, when asked when he would get his shot, the Prime Minister said that he had to wait for his doctors’ approval before taking the vaccine.
On Saturday, the issue came up again and the Prime Minister indicated that he was ready to receive his first shot.
Yesterday, the country also received the largest shipment of vaccines bought from the Chinese manufacturer. Plans for a nationwide vaccine rollout are expected to be announced on Friday.
Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr Roshan Parasram was present for the Prime Minister’s first vaccine and said that all the regional health authorities are expected to receive a batch out of the 800,000 Sinopharm vaccines to start the mass vaccination drive.
He said that they will begin with those over 60 years of age and anyone with Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs), as well as healthcare workers.