CORONAVAC. Dr. Edwin Miraflor, officer-in-charge of the City Health Office, shows a vial of Sinovac’s CoronaVac during the ceremonial vaccination held at the Bacolod Government Center on March 5, 2021. He enjoined residents of Bacolod to take the readily available vaccine. (PNA Bacolod file photo)
BACOLOD CITY – Residents of this city are enjoined anew to register for vaccination against coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) as medical front-liners who took the initial shots of Sinovac’s CoronaVac have been doing well days after they were vaccinated.
Dr. Edwin Miraflor, officer-in-charge of the City Health Office, said on Tuesday that since life is at stake, the best vaccine is the one readily available.
“We have already seen our medical practitioners avail of the Sinovac vaccine and so far, since March 5, we have not received any adverse reaction,” Miraflor told the Philippine News Agency.
He pointed out that “without prejudice to any race or nationality, Sinovac is one of the top vaccine manufacturers in China”, utilizing the traditional method of vaccine preparation.
“It is not like the replica gadgets and other peripherals sold wherever that we fear may be compromised. Sinovac’s CoronaVac has undergone clinical trials and in fact, has been used in other Asian countries,” he added.
On March 5, Miraflor administered the first shot here of CoronaVac on Dr. Miguel Sarabia, president of the Negros Occidental Medical Society, in a ceremonial vaccination held at the Bacolod Government Center, a couple of hours after the Sinovac vaccines arrived in the city.
Two Covid-19 referral hospitals here, including the Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital (CLMMRH) and the Dr. Pablo O. Torre Memorial Hospital (DPOTMH), held a ceremonial vaccination in separate rites held on Monday.
“We hope this message resonates down to the community that more of you will now agree to get vaccinated. More than this, I hope that our people will greatly realize that the development and approval of safe and effective vaccine less than a year after the emergence of a new virus is a stunning scientific achievement and a much-needed source of hope,” Miraflor, who represented Mayor Evelio Leonardia at the DPOTMH event, said.
Dr. Jose Pepito Malapitan, acting assistant medical director of DPOTMH, said it is best that medical front-liners can show that they are willing to get vaccinated themselves to give the people courage to also avail themselves of the vaccine.
“Right now, I feel nothing, but we have to be observed and we have to report anything that we might feel for 24 hours. So far even in studies, there are only a few who had any reaction,” Malapitan said after taking the first shot.
In Bacolod, residents willing to be vaccinated can register online through tinyurl.com/bcdceironline and tinyurl.com/bcdceirbrgy.
As of March 8, Bacolod has no new case and death. Of the 5,847 confirmed cases in the city, 5,589 have recovered. There are still 70 active cases and 188 deaths. (PNA)
The Philippine News Agency is a web-based newswire service of the Philippine government under the supervision of the News and Information Bureau (NIB) of the Presidential Communications Office (PCO).