At a press conference before starting vaccination, Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Truong Son said that the dream of the whole world is to have a vaccine to prevent Covid-19, an effective `anti-epidemic armor`, and also a top priority.

`We are proud to be one of the first countries in Southeast Asia to deploy Covid-19 vaccination as soon as possible, and at the same time develop the vaccine domestically,` Deputy Minister Son emphasized.

In Hai Duong, from 7:30 a.m., 30 people from the tracing and treatment force and the `community Covid team` lined up at facility two of Kim Thanh District Medical Center to wait for vaccination.

People getting vaccinated line up at the injection site at Kim Thanh District Medical Center, Hai Duong.

Right at the gate of the medical center, two officials in charge of confirming registration, measuring body temperature, and issuing `Covid-19 vaccination card`.

Meanwhile, another medical staff enters the injector’s personal information into the computer system.

At the injection room, four medical staff were in charge of injecting two people.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Hue gets vaccinated against Covid-19 at Kim Thanh District Medical Center, Hai Duong.

As one of the first people vaccinated, Ms. Nguyen Thi Hue, 34 years old, a member of the Tan Viet Commune Community Covid Team, said she was worried about the quality of the vaccine, but was confident there would be good results.

`My work during the epidemic often requires me to come into contact with F1 and F2 people, so the risk is high. I decided to register for vaccination to protect my health and the health of those around me,` Ms. Hue said.

Hai Duong is at the top of the vaccination priority list.

In Ho Chi Minh City, from 7am, three boxes of vaccines were received by the City Hospital of Tropical Diseases and immediately brought to cold storage, Pharmacy Department, to ensure preservation at a temperature of 2-8oC.

Director of Ho Chi Minh City Hospital for Tropical Diseases Nguyen Van Vinh Chau said it is expected that 100 staff members, including doctors and nurses in Infection Department D, Adult Resuscitation, and the Emergency Department, will be vaccinated today.

Doctor Du Le Thanh Xuan, 28 years old, from the Department of Intensive Care and Poison Control for adults, received the first injection.

AstraZeneca vaccine was taken out of cold storage and put on a bus to the Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Ho Chi Minh City on the morning of March 8.

At the same time, in Hanoi, specialized vehicles also brought vaccines to the Central Tropical Diseases Hospital, facility 2, to prepare for injection.

`If conditions permit, we will vaccinate all hospital staff, but because the vaccine must still be distributed to many other provinces, we prioritize those who have direct contact with Covid-19 patients at the facility.`

Midwife Hoang Thi Thu Hang, Department of Surgery and Obstetrics, Central Tropical Diseases Hospital, was one of the first people to receive the vaccine.

`As one of the first people to be vaccinated, I am very happy, especially to be given priority on March 8 – International Women’s Day. Thank you very much,` Ms. Hang shared.

At the Central Tropical Diseases Hospital, Hanoi, international supervisors are handing over and checking vaccination conditions inside the vaccination room before the official vaccination time, the morning of March 8.

The AstraZeneca vaccine was produced and put into use among the fastest in the world.

Deputy Minister Son also advised that vaccines require time to ensure immunogenic factors.

Those vaccinated this time are medical staff working at Covid-19 treatment facilities.

Hanoi begins Covid-19 vaccination for 100 medical staff at Central Tropical Diseases Hospital No. 2

The first medical staff at the Central Tropical Diseases Hospital to receive the Covid-19 vaccine.

During the Conference to deploy the Covid-19 vaccination plan, on March 6, Associate Professor Duong Thi Hong, Deputy Director of the Central Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology, emphasized that each location will vaccinate no more than 100 people at a time.

Vaccine recipients must be screened.

Medical staff must carefully advise the injector about possible reactions after injection, such as pain at the injection site, headache, nausea, chills, fever… or more severe, anaphylactic reactions.

Vaccination history will be updated and tracked on the electronic health record.

The Ministry of Health requires vaccination sites to fully prepare facilities and cold chains to preserve vaccines to meet requirements.

Vietnam currently has 117,500 doses of Covid-19 AstraZeneca vaccine to serve the National Expanded Immunization Program.

It is expected that in March an additional 1.3 million doses of vaccine will arrive in the Covax Facility program.