PHCC to start giving Moderna COVID-19 vaccine from today
Moderna COVID-19 vaccine to be provided at Al Wajba, Lebaib, and Al Thumama health centres
Patients booked in for vaccination appointments at Al Wajba, Lebaib, and Thumama health centres will be informed which vaccine they will receive: Moderna or Pfizer and BioNTech
The Moderna vaccine is similar to the Pfizer and BioNtech vaccine and people should not be concerned which vaccine they are given
THE Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC) will start administering Moderna COVID-19 vaccine at three of its health centres — Al Wajba, Lebaib, and Thumama — from Monday, February 22.
The move comes following an initial delivery of Moderna vaccines last week, with more quantities of the vaccines due in the coming weeks.
Dr Abdullatif Al Khal, Chair of the National Health Strategic Group on COVID-19, said, “We were clear from the outset that we only wanted to administer safe and effective vaccines to the people of Qatar that are approved in Qatar and internationally and it is very encouraging that we can now add the Moderna vaccine to the Pfizer and BioNTech vaccine in our vaccination programme. The Moderna vaccine is very similar to the Pfizer and BioNtech vaccine and people should not be concerned which vaccine they are given.”
Dr Al Khal, who is also the Head of Infectious Diseases at Hamad Medical Corporation, continued, “Studies show the Moderna vaccine is nearly 95 percent effective in preventing symptomatic COVID-19 infection after two doses and it has been extensively tested and found to be safe for people aged 18 years and over.”
The Moderna COVID-19 vaccine is already being used in many countries around the world and has been approved for safety and efficacy by the US Food and Drug Administration, European Union, the United Kingdom and the Department of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Control at the Ministry of Public Health in Qatar.
Dr Mariam Abdulmalik, managing director of PHCC, said: “Patients booked in for vaccination appointments at
Al Wajba, Lebaib and Thumama health centres will be informed which vaccine they will receive - Moderna or Pfizer-BioNTech.”
“The appointment process remains the same, with our PHCC teams continuing to directly contact people who meet the current eligibility criteria and schedule them for appointments. As more quantities of the Moderna vaccine become available to us throughout March, we will increase the number of health centres using both types of vaccine,” she added.