GEORGE TOWN – Despite it being the talk of the town that senior citizens in Penang are to receive the China-manufactured Sinovac vaccine, none have obtained it.
Penang Health Director Datuk Dr Asmayani Khalib told The Vibes that senior citizens are currently being administered the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.
“On when the Sinovac vaccine will be administered, this depends on the Health Ministry’s timeline and planning,” said Dr Asmayani.
Even though initial elderly turnout since the start of the inoculation programme’s second phase was encouraging, many in that age bracket remain concerned about the side effects of the vaccine.
Society of Active Generation of Elders chairman Chin Sek Ham told The Vibes that most preferred to be injected with Sinovac as opposed to Pfizer-BioNTech.
“We have read and heard about the many side effects of Pfizer-BioNTech and AstraZeneca vaccines. Both are scary to us.
“It seems like the first dose is okay, but the second one has adverse side effects,” he said.
The octogenarian said that he is hesitant to register now because he is unsure which vaccine is better.
Chin said that given the choice, he would pick Sinovac because it has the least reported side effects.
The latest report released by Thailand regarding the Chinese vaccine was also promising, he said.
Last week, Chulalongkorn University virology specialist and chief of the Centre of Excellence in Clinical Virology Dr Yong Poovorawan revealed that the Sinovac vaccine provides as much as “99.4% immunity against Covid-19 a month after the second dose”.
“There is a lot of talk about how some vaccines are not actually vaccines, and these statements are from very qualified people.
“As of now, we are staying at home and observing,” Chin said.
However, Yeoh Teng Hock, 84, was happy to have received his first dose on the second day of phase two of the vaccination programme.
“At first I was sceptical about the vaccine, but I am more confident after being advised by my son and grandson, the latter of which is a doctor, that the vaccine is good for elderly people like me. I then asked my grandson to rope me in for the vaccine.
“I was accompanied by my daughter and found that my son and grandson were right as the jab was successful and I didn’t experience any side effects,” he said, adding that his arm only felt sore.
Angela Margory Pinto, 73, has registered to be vaccinated but is still awaiting to be updated on when her turn will be.
Despite being sceptical on the efficacy of the vaccine, she is willing to take the risk because it is better to be safe than sorry.
“After having read and obtained feedback on Pfizer-BioNTech, I prefer this compared with Sinovac.
“But since there is no choice, I’ll take whatever is offered,” she said. – The Vibes, April 25, 2021
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