Pathfinder
Editor, Senior Moderator
Over orders of H1N1 doses?
Written by Jessica Jaganathan Wednesday, 06 January 2010 09:22
Singapore might have ordered too many doses of the Influenza A (H1N1) vaccines, just as other countries have done in their haste to beat an unknown virus.
Of the 1.3 million doses secured by the Health Ministry (MOH), only 417,250 have been bought by clinics and essential front-line staff so far.
Although this number might increase with the traditional January-to-February flu season prompting more people to go for vaccinations, many doses may still have to be discarded because of their limited shelf life. The two H1N1 vaccines here have an expiry of either 12 or 18 months.
On Tuesday, the MOH told The Straits Times that it might respond to the World Health Organisation's (WHO) request to developed countries to donate 10 per cent of their vaccine purchases to developing nations.
A spokesman said the ministry is sorting out legal details and will do its 'fair share as a responsible global citizen, but the donation will be modest'.
On his blog on Tuesday, Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan said matching vaccine supply with demand is a challenging problem faced by flu manufacturers and general practitioners annually. -- Courtesy of The Straits Times
http://ip-174-142-62-49.static.privatedns.com/index.php/Straits-Times/over-orders-of-h1n1-doses.html
Written by Jessica Jaganathan Wednesday, 06 January 2010 09:22
Singapore might have ordered too many doses of the Influenza A (H1N1) vaccines, just as other countries have done in their haste to beat an unknown virus.
Of the 1.3 million doses secured by the Health Ministry (MOH), only 417,250 have been bought by clinics and essential front-line staff so far.
Although this number might increase with the traditional January-to-February flu season prompting more people to go for vaccinations, many doses may still have to be discarded because of their limited shelf life. The two H1N1 vaccines here have an expiry of either 12 or 18 months.
On Tuesday, the MOH told The Straits Times that it might respond to the World Health Organisation's (WHO) request to developed countries to donate 10 per cent of their vaccine purchases to developing nations.
A spokesman said the ministry is sorting out legal details and will do its 'fair share as a responsible global citizen, but the donation will be modest'.
On his blog on Tuesday, Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan said matching vaccine supply with demand is a challenging problem faced by flu manufacturers and general practitioners annually. -- Courtesy of The Straits Times
http://ip-174-142-62-49.static.privatedns.com/index.php/Straits-Times/over-orders-of-h1n1-doses.html