CMO’s bill of health on COVID-19 vaccine

No one in Barbados who received the Covishield Oxford AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine has had any adverse reactions, the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) said Friday, as he sought to assure the jab’s safety after a specific batch of the vaccine was held back in some European Union nations based on unconfirmed reports of blood clotting.

CMO Dr Kenneth George said that those who received the India-made vaccine which was donated by the Indian government, have reported only mild side effects, including soreness and redness at the site, while younger people reported feeling unwell for between 24 and 48 hours after the inoculation.

“But in general we have a team that is monitoring the side effects. It is led out of the Barbados Drug Service and that team is going to meet tonight to review all the issues because issues will come up from time to time,” said Dr George.

“And we in Barbados and with the ministry that we run, we will be as transparent with you if there are issues we will come to you. We will need to gather the evidence because if you want to link an adverse side effect to a vaccination, there must be evidence gathering and there must be understanding of persons’ original risk. So it is not a decision that is taken lightly.”

The Chief Medical Officer told journalists during a presentation at the Pan American Health Organization’s Dayrell’s Road office that overall, the AstraZeneca vaccines are considered safe, with the overall objective to protect people from severe COVID-19.

He said this was why health authorities and other figures were urging people to reduce their risk of having severe illness by up to 80 per cent through being inoculated.

“And your outcomes will be better,” the CMO added. “And as more information comes we are also getting more information to suggest that these vaccines stop the transmission of viruses from person to person. And that’s good. We have started to document the evidence with respect to vaccines and travels. We are not there yet but it is a process and we have to gather the international evidence and then make a decision locally on that.”

PAHO/World Health Organization Representative to Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean Dr Yitades Gebre said it was important to note that the European Medicines Agency’s position is that the vaccine’s benefits continue to outweigh its risks. He noted the EMA’s Pharmacovigilance Risk Assessment Committee suggested the vaccine can continue to be administered while an investigation of cases of thromboembolic events is ongoing.

WHO’s Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety (GACVS) systematically reviews any vaccine safety signals and concerns related to COVID-19 vaccine safety, and meets every two weeks to advise WHO on any new safety signals or concerns assessing the current reports with the AstraZeneca vaccine, Dr Gebre said.

As soon as WHO has gained a full understanding of these events, the findings, and any changes to current recommendations will be immediately communicated to the public, he added.

Dr Gebre told journalists: “Vaccination against COVID-19 will not reduce deaths from other causes. Deaths from other causes will continue to occur, including after vaccination, but casually unrelated. As of March 10, over 300 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered since the start of the pandemic, based on data reported to WHO by national governments. No cases of death have been found to have been caused by COVID-19 vaccines to date.”

Canada on Thursday declared the AstraZeneca vaccine safe after Denmark, Iceland and Norway temporarily suspended its use amid reports that blood clots had formed in some who had received the shot.

“Health Canada is aware of reports of adverse events in Europe following immunization with the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, and would like to reassure Canadians that the benefits of the vaccine continue to outweigh its risks,” the health department said in a statement.

Dr Gebre declared that PAHO would deliver the vaccines in the coming weeks.  He said PAHO as the procuring agency has issued price estimates to the countries to prepare purchase orders to the manufacturer.

Dr Gebre said: “It is inevitable that there will be supply challenges for COVID-19 vaccines while we wait for global manufacturing to reach capacity, which is why it makes sense for countries to participate in COVAX, which has the largest, most actively managed portfolio of vaccine candidates in the world. At this time, we have not been made aware of any changes to supply timetables and or impact on the AstraZeneca sites supplying COVAX”.

(anestahenry@barbadostoday.bb)