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Free Swine Flu shot is a flop!
Only 384 of 11,600 H1N1 vaccines meant for hospital staff used in 2 months. City?s doctors not keen on free H1N1 vaccine because they aren?t aware of the side effects, while some say they are immune to H1N1. What has happened to all the hype?
By Dipti Barve
Posted On Friday, May 21, 2010 at 02:26:49 AM
The swine flu vaccine which has failed to find favour with city doctors
Why docs shy away from Panenza
The vaccine, Panenza, is not mandatory for doctors
A consent form has to be signed before Panenza is administered, which is not the case with other vaccines
The PMC has not issued hospitals with ?official? information on the side effects or the dosage
The hype surrounding swine flu has died down, nor is the flu as virulent, so the vaccine is not being taken seriously. Some docs say they are immune to H1N1
After continuous requests and constant speculation over the release of the swine flu vaccine, it got a surprisingly cold response when it was actually released.
The coldest shoulder to the vaccine came from the staff of most city hospitals. Although they are part of swine flu treatment teams, they are not willing to get vaccinated themselves.
This is puzzling, as these doctors and paramedical staff fall in the high-risk category as they are more likely to be exposed to the H1N1 virus.
Hasn?t the fact that Pune is the epicentre of the epidemic, with 236 deaths so far, motivated them to take the preventive Panenza vaccine?
When this reporter accessed state health services records, she found that out of 11,600 vaccines distributed in Pune district, only 384 doses were used.
Dr V M Kulkarni, assistant director of the state health services told Mirror, ?We have distributed 11,600 doses of the swine flu vaccine for Pune district on March 27, 2010.
The vaccine, Panenza, is manufactured by Sanofi Pasteur based in France. But after almost two months, only 384 doses of vaccine have been administered in Pune circle that includes Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad.
We have distributed vaccines to all government hospitals and primary health centres for the convenience of doctors.
This vaccine will be given free of cost to all hospital staff like nurses, ward boys, pharmacists and compounders involved in swine flu treatment in all hospitals.
We are sending reminder letters to all the concerned heads about the vaccination report after every three days. But unfortunately, due to the lack of response and awareness about the flu vaccine among doctors and paramedical staff, very few doctors are coming forward for vaccination.?
?We were expecting that Pune being an epicentre, doctors who are involved in swine flu treatment will come forward in high numbers for the vaccination, but it is surprising that there are very few takers for the vaccine,? Dr Kulkarni added.
Speaking to doctors across the city, we figured out why exactly doctors are not queuing up to take the free vaccination.
While private hospitals say they are not well-informed about the vaccine as its side effects have not been communicated to them by the government in first place.
Dr Shubhada Sharma, assistant medical administrator of King Edward Memorial Hospital said, ?PMC has not informed us about the possible side effects of this swine flu vaccine on record in the meeting held before the vaccination process.
We are not even sure about the nature of side-effects and doses of the vaccine. Who will take responsibility if any major side effect occurs after the vaccination is administered?
So, as a precaution, none of the doctors or paramedical staff are willing to take the swine flu vaccination. First, the PMC should confirm on record about the possible side-effects and doses to be administered for the vaccination.
Once this is done, we will definitely send our doctors to be vaccinated.?
Dr Prashant Mogalikar, medical superintendent of Jehangir Hospital, said, ?PMC has just distributed consent forms for the vaccinations and brochures with the vaccine information to all concerned private hospitals.
But that is not enough. PMC should conduct a special awareness programme about this swine flu vaccine for all
doctors and paramedical staff who are concerned with swine flu treatment.
Many of the doctors will definitely come up for vaccination after having complete information about the vaccine. We will send our doctors for vaccination after having complete knowledge of the possible side-effects of this vaccine.?
Dr Sharad Agarkhedkar, city president of IMA (Indian Medical Association) told Mirror what the potential side-effect of the swine flu vaccine is, which has now become a deterrent for most doctors.
?As the government is issuing a consent form before administering the vaccine, it is creating doubts about the side effects of the vaccine in the minds of doctors.
For any other vaccine, one does not have to fill up a consent form before taking the vaccine. The potential side effect is paralysis which is known as the Gullin Barre Syndrome (GBS).
This side-effect is very rare and could occur within 60 days after the vaccination. This side effect is curable but treatment is expensive. There are no reports about any side effect worldwide as per my knowledge.
So, doctors should not worry about the side effects of this vaccine. Rather, the government should educate doctors about it by organising seminars. Many of the doctors and paramedical staff are under the impression that they will not catch swine flu as their body has become immune to the virus.?
Dr Agarkhedkar also cautioned the public as well as doctors against taking the swine flu epidemic lightly. He said that the virus could raise its head once again in the coming monsoon season.
The PMC health department claims they had called a meeting of all the representatives of government and private hospitals, which are part of the swine flu treatment, to inform them about the vaccine.
The reason behind this was that doctors and paramedical staff fall in the high risk category and priority should be given to medical professionals. This vaccination is not mandatory for medical professionals.
A doctor who comes under swine flu treatment can get the vaccine by his or her will. So till date, whosoever had come for vaccination to Sassoon General Hospital had been administered the vaccine.
Mirror sent Sanofi Pasteur, the company that manufactures Panenza, an email two days ago to find out from them what the possible side effects of the vaccine are. However, the concerned authorities did not respond to the communication.
Only 384 of 11,600 H1N1 vaccines meant for hospital staff used in 2 months. City?s doctors not keen on free H1N1 vaccine because they aren?t aware of the side effects, while some say they are immune to H1N1. What has happened to all the hype?
By Dipti Barve
Posted On Friday, May 21, 2010 at 02:26:49 AM
The swine flu vaccine which has failed to find favour with city doctors
Why docs shy away from Panenza
The vaccine, Panenza, is not mandatory for doctors
A consent form has to be signed before Panenza is administered, which is not the case with other vaccines
The PMC has not issued hospitals with ?official? information on the side effects or the dosage
The hype surrounding swine flu has died down, nor is the flu as virulent, so the vaccine is not being taken seriously. Some docs say they are immune to H1N1
After continuous requests and constant speculation over the release of the swine flu vaccine, it got a surprisingly cold response when it was actually released.
The coldest shoulder to the vaccine came from the staff of most city hospitals. Although they are part of swine flu treatment teams, they are not willing to get vaccinated themselves.
This is puzzling, as these doctors and paramedical staff fall in the high-risk category as they are more likely to be exposed to the H1N1 virus.
Hasn?t the fact that Pune is the epicentre of the epidemic, with 236 deaths so far, motivated them to take the preventive Panenza vaccine?
When this reporter accessed state health services records, she found that out of 11,600 vaccines distributed in Pune district, only 384 doses were used.
Dr V M Kulkarni, assistant director of the state health services told Mirror, ?We have distributed 11,600 doses of the swine flu vaccine for Pune district on March 27, 2010.
The vaccine, Panenza, is manufactured by Sanofi Pasteur based in France. But after almost two months, only 384 doses of vaccine have been administered in Pune circle that includes Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad.
We have distributed vaccines to all government hospitals and primary health centres for the convenience of doctors.
This vaccine will be given free of cost to all hospital staff like nurses, ward boys, pharmacists and compounders involved in swine flu treatment in all hospitals.
We are sending reminder letters to all the concerned heads about the vaccination report after every three days. But unfortunately, due to the lack of response and awareness about the flu vaccine among doctors and paramedical staff, very few doctors are coming forward for vaccination.?
?We were expecting that Pune being an epicentre, doctors who are involved in swine flu treatment will come forward in high numbers for the vaccination, but it is surprising that there are very few takers for the vaccine,? Dr Kulkarni added.
Speaking to doctors across the city, we figured out why exactly doctors are not queuing up to take the free vaccination.
While private hospitals say they are not well-informed about the vaccine as its side effects have not been communicated to them by the government in first place.
Dr Shubhada Sharma, assistant medical administrator of King Edward Memorial Hospital said, ?PMC has not informed us about the possible side effects of this swine flu vaccine on record in the meeting held before the vaccination process.
We are not even sure about the nature of side-effects and doses of the vaccine. Who will take responsibility if any major side effect occurs after the vaccination is administered?
So, as a precaution, none of the doctors or paramedical staff are willing to take the swine flu vaccination. First, the PMC should confirm on record about the possible side-effects and doses to be administered for the vaccination.
Once this is done, we will definitely send our doctors to be vaccinated.?
Dr Prashant Mogalikar, medical superintendent of Jehangir Hospital, said, ?PMC has just distributed consent forms for the vaccinations and brochures with the vaccine information to all concerned private hospitals.
But that is not enough. PMC should conduct a special awareness programme about this swine flu vaccine for all
doctors and paramedical staff who are concerned with swine flu treatment.
Many of the doctors will definitely come up for vaccination after having complete information about the vaccine. We will send our doctors for vaccination after having complete knowledge of the possible side-effects of this vaccine.?
Dr Sharad Agarkhedkar, city president of IMA (Indian Medical Association) told Mirror what the potential side-effect of the swine flu vaccine is, which has now become a deterrent for most doctors.
?As the government is issuing a consent form before administering the vaccine, it is creating doubts about the side effects of the vaccine in the minds of doctors.
For any other vaccine, one does not have to fill up a consent form before taking the vaccine. The potential side effect is paralysis which is known as the Gullin Barre Syndrome (GBS).
This side-effect is very rare and could occur within 60 days after the vaccination. This side effect is curable but treatment is expensive. There are no reports about any side effect worldwide as per my knowledge.
So, doctors should not worry about the side effects of this vaccine. Rather, the government should educate doctors about it by organising seminars. Many of the doctors and paramedical staff are under the impression that they will not catch swine flu as their body has become immune to the virus.?
Dr Agarkhedkar also cautioned the public as well as doctors against taking the swine flu epidemic lightly. He said that the virus could raise its head once again in the coming monsoon season.
The PMC health department claims they had called a meeting of all the representatives of government and private hospitals, which are part of the swine flu treatment, to inform them about the vaccine.
The reason behind this was that doctors and paramedical staff fall in the high risk category and priority should be given to medical professionals. This vaccination is not mandatory for medical professionals.
A doctor who comes under swine flu treatment can get the vaccine by his or her will. So till date, whosoever had come for vaccination to Sassoon General Hospital had been administered the vaccine.
Mirror sent Sanofi Pasteur, the company that manufactures Panenza, an email two days ago to find out from them what the possible side effects of the vaccine are. However, the concerned authorities did not respond to the communication.
