New Covid-19 vaccine centre in Sharjah opens trials to all

dubai — Residents across the UAE may now volunteer for the ongoing Covid-19 vaccine trial, as the Ministry of Health and Prevention (Mohap) sets up a second screening and vaccination centre in Sharjah.

Sharjah’s Al Qarayen Health Centre has been assigned as the first centre outside Abu Dhabi that can register, screen and test volunteers who wish to be part of the Phase 3 clinical trials of the Covid-19 vaccine, the ministry said on Wednesday.

Set to run daily from 8am to 8pm, Al Qarayen Health Centre can accommodate over 500 volunteers a day and it is open to residents from Sharjah, Dubai and the Northern Emirates. Residents will be able to register, get screened, and receive the shot at the site all on the same day.

Participants should be 18 to 60 years of age with no serious underlying medical issues and without previous Covid-19 infection. They will be given two doses of the vaccine within a period of three weeks, which will be followed by regular check-ups. The trials are expected to last for three to six months.

“We are strengthening our cooperation with international partners to support the development of a safe vaccine against the disease. Thus, expanding the geographical scope of the #4Humanity campaign to include all emirates aims to enhance the results of clinical trials and ensure the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine on a larger segment of individuals,” said Abdul Rahman Mohammed Al Owais, Minister of Health and Prevention.

Thousands of volunteers

The vaccine being trialled in the country is the world’s first inactivated Covid-19 vaccine that entered the third and final stage of the process. It was developed by pharmaceutical giant Sinopharm CNBG. During the first and second stage of trials carried out in China, 100 per cent of volunteers generated Covid-19 antibodies after two doses in 28 days.

In the UAE, the Phase 3 clinical trials officially started on July 16, with thousands of people registering for the programme through the website 4humanity.ae.

Though the target number of volunteers for the trial was placed at 15,000, health authorities have reported that as many as 10,000 have signed up just a few days after the programme’s launch. While the trials were initially opened to residents in the Capital, authorities had been working to make the programme available to everyone in the country since last month.

Setting up the Sharjah facility comes on the heels of the successful opening of the walk-in registration centre at Adnec.