SIBU, July 13: Sibu Divisional Health Office has conducted a thorough investigation on a claim by a man who said that his father was injected with an empty syringe at the Sibu Indoor Stadium vaccination centre (PPV) recently.
Sibu CITF (Covid-19 Immunisation Task Force) in a statement today said they had received a report regarding an incident where a patient had to be injected twice because the staff had to react quickly to avoid committing an overdose error, and had injected the empty syringe.
Corrections and adjustments were done promptly, and the vaccine recipient was then given the correct dose.
“The staff’s mistake was deeply regrettable, but the staff’s quick action to avoid overdosing was good because overdosing can be harmful,” it said.
Sibu CITF added that the said error may be due to the use of the Sinovac vaccine, which involves having two doses stored in a single bottle starting July 12, 2021.
Following the incident, it had implemented retraining for all staff and was confident that the matter would not be repeated.
The office stressed that the vaccinators involved consisted of certified and trained health personnel and were officially appointed by the Sibu Divisional Health Office to carry out the task at the Sibu Indoor Stadium PPV.
It further added that the practice of administering or injecting the Covid-19 vaccines at all PPVs in Sibu was in total compliance with standard operating procedures (SOPs) and strict protocols to ensure the total dose of vaccines received at PPVs and the total dose of vaccines given or injected into a recipient was the same.
“These SOPs and protocols cover the safety of the vaccine in all PPVs and are always emphasised throughout their operation. It is impossible that the vaccine will be sold to other parties as each dose is monitored by several parties including pharmacists, health experts and many supervisors at the Sibu Indoor Stadium,” it said. — DayakDaily
