COVID-19 inoculation drive begins for health workers in Arakan State

By Kyaw Thu Htay 27 Jan 2021

Kyaw Thu Htay | DMG
27 January 2021, Sittwe  

More than 4,400 healthcare workers in Arakan State have begun receiving their first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine donated by India, according to the state’s Department of Public Health. 

The vaccine is being administered to health workers across Myanmar beginning on January 27. 

The superintendent of Sittwe General Hospital, Dr. Zaw Lwin, is overseeing inoculations to staff there on Wednesday and Thursday.  

He said a space has been arranged to monitor those who receive the vaccine for 30 minutes following their shot, and emergency care is available to innoculees if needed.  

“I was worried about allergies before I was injected with the vaccine. It is safe. I did not feel anything strange,” said Dr. Zaw Lwin, who urged others to get vaccinated without fear. 

Health workers are being inoculated of their own volition.  

Daw Yi Yi Phyo, a senior nurse from Sittwe General Hospital who was vaccinated on Wednesday, said she was worried about being one of the first to receive the vaccine in Myanmar. “However, nothing happened,” she added. “I want to tell other people there’s no need to be worried.”   

Daw San San Htwe, another nurse who was vaccinated, echoed that sentiment. 

“You do not need to be worried. You should go and get vaccinated if you get a chance. I was vaccinated and I am OK,” she said. 

The vaccine donated by India, known as Covishield, is administered in two doses, with the second shot coming four weeks after the first. 

Health workers and volunteers working on the front line in the fight against COVID-19 have been placed at the front of the queue for a vaccine rollout that will play out over several months. 

Pyithu Hluttaw lawmakers will receive their first injection on January 29 and Amyotha Hluttaw lawmakers will get their initial jab on January 30.  

As of January 27, a total of 4,122 people had tested positive for COVID-19, 36 had died of the disease and 20 patients were receiving medical treatment in Arakan State, according to figures from the state’s Public Health Department.