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Resumption of H1N1 jab starts from tomorrow
Rasidah HAB
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN
Sunday, March 7, 2010
THE Ministry of Health (MoH) will resume the mass Influenza A (H1N1) vaccination programme tomorrow, three weeks after it was suspended.
The ministry yesterday also reported that for the week since March 1 until March 5, 114 H1N1 cases were recorded in the country.
"We regret the suspension of the programme as we needed to ensure that the new batch of Influenza A (H1N1) vaccines in the country meet the ministry's quality and safety standards," said Minister of Health Pehin Orang Kaya Indera Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Hj Suyoi Hj Osman at a press conference yesterday.
"We have now received confirmation from the manufacturer and laboratory reports from Belgium and USA on the safety of the vaccine," he added.
According to the minister, the vaccines have continuously been used in many countries globally. To date, 75 million doses have been administered worldwide and the minister assures that "we are fully satisfied that the vaccine is safe to be used".
Answering questions from the media, the minister said, "We should have enough vaccines and there will be more vaccines coming in".
Pehin Dato Hj Suyoi added: "We managed to get the testing done in two weeks. It could have been earlier, but we want to be sure of the safety of the vaccines. This is our responsibility to the public, that the vaccines are safe and that everyone will be protected."
Since the suspension of the mass vaccination programme on February 13, the Ministry of Health has vaccinated close to 40,000 people.
"We don't take this matter lightly. We don't just issue statements saying that it's safe. We say it's safe because we know it's safe. Otherwise, we will not be doing our responsibility to the public," said the minister.
Pehin Dato Hj Suyoi also spoke of how the transmission of H1N1 in Brunei has been active since the beginning of the year.
"On March 5, we had 25 new H1N1 cases. For the week since March 1 until now (March 5), we have had 114 cases. These cases are recorded from all four districts in the country. The figure does not show significant decrease or increase," said the minister.
With recent reports of deaths in Singapore and Malaysia, the minister strongly urges the public to get their vaccination if they have not done so, to protect them from H1N1.
"We will continue advising the public to take the necessary measures to protect themselves from H1N1; to not spread it to others, and not be too complacent as it is not yet over," he added.
Pehin Dato Hj Suyoi said that weather conditions have also contributed to the rise in seasonal flu and "as a result, we have more patients coming to us, and from there, we have discovered some of them are infected by H1N1".
The minister added that with the continuation of the mass vaccination programme, vaccinations for students in schools will also continue.
The mass vaccination for schools started on February 8 with Paduka Seri Begawan Sultan Science College as the first school to receive the vaccination for its students.
"We are currently discussing this with the Department of Schools. They will have to arrange the details of when they want the programme to commence. We (Ministry of Health) are all ready by Monday," said the minister.The Brunei Times
Rasidah HAB
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN
Sunday, March 7, 2010
THE Ministry of Health (MoH) will resume the mass Influenza A (H1N1) vaccination programme tomorrow, three weeks after it was suspended.
The ministry yesterday also reported that for the week since March 1 until March 5, 114 H1N1 cases were recorded in the country.
"We regret the suspension of the programme as we needed to ensure that the new batch of Influenza A (H1N1) vaccines in the country meet the ministry's quality and safety standards," said Minister of Health Pehin Orang Kaya Indera Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Hj Suyoi Hj Osman at a press conference yesterday.
"We have now received confirmation from the manufacturer and laboratory reports from Belgium and USA on the safety of the vaccine," he added.
According to the minister, the vaccines have continuously been used in many countries globally. To date, 75 million doses have been administered worldwide and the minister assures that "we are fully satisfied that the vaccine is safe to be used".
Answering questions from the media, the minister said, "We should have enough vaccines and there will be more vaccines coming in".
Pehin Dato Hj Suyoi added: "We managed to get the testing done in two weeks. It could have been earlier, but we want to be sure of the safety of the vaccines. This is our responsibility to the public, that the vaccines are safe and that everyone will be protected."
Since the suspension of the mass vaccination programme on February 13, the Ministry of Health has vaccinated close to 40,000 people.
"We don't take this matter lightly. We don't just issue statements saying that it's safe. We say it's safe because we know it's safe. Otherwise, we will not be doing our responsibility to the public," said the minister.
Pehin Dato Hj Suyoi also spoke of how the transmission of H1N1 in Brunei has been active since the beginning of the year.
"On March 5, we had 25 new H1N1 cases. For the week since March 1 until now (March 5), we have had 114 cases. These cases are recorded from all four districts in the country. The figure does not show significant decrease or increase," said the minister.
With recent reports of deaths in Singapore and Malaysia, the minister strongly urges the public to get their vaccination if they have not done so, to protect them from H1N1.
"We will continue advising the public to take the necessary measures to protect themselves from H1N1; to not spread it to others, and not be too complacent as it is not yet over," he added.
Pehin Dato Hj Suyoi said that weather conditions have also contributed to the rise in seasonal flu and "as a result, we have more patients coming to us, and from there, we have discovered some of them are infected by H1N1".
The minister added that with the continuation of the mass vaccination programme, vaccinations for students in schools will also continue.
The mass vaccination for schools started on February 8 with Paduka Seri Begawan Sultan Science College as the first school to receive the vaccination for its students.
"We are currently discussing this with the Department of Schools. They will have to arrange the details of when they want the programme to commence. We (Ministry of Health) are all ready by Monday," said the minister.The Brunei Times
