Bacolod City -Twenty-four more healthcare professionals were inoculated in the second rollout of Sinovac vaccines at the Bacolod City Government Center yesterday.
“We want to send a strong message to the community that these doctors, who care for your good health, affirm that the vaccines are safe and we need to avail of them,” said EOC deputy for medical Dr. Chris Sorongon, during the rollout organized by the City’s COVID-19 Vaccination Council (CoVaC).
Psychiatrist Dr. Jocelyn Gayares and Dr. Raymond Wong, medical consultants at the Riverside Medical Center Inc. (RMCI), were among those who were vaccinated.
Those who got the vaccine shots were thereafter monitored for 30 minutes. Dr. Gayares, for her part, said she did not experience any adverse effect post-vaccination.
The initial doses received by the medical professionals form part of around 6,300 Sinovac-made CoronaVac vials allocated by the Department of Health for two hospitals in Bacolod City.
Sorongon said the vaccine allocation will cater to 3,150 healthcare workers in the City.
Mayor Evelio Leonardia said that Bacolod is “fortunate” that medical professionals are giving the City’s vaccination program their “unconditional and full cooperation.”
On March 5, the City held its first actual rollout of Sinovac vaccines at the BCGC lobby where five medical doctors and one nurse were inoculated.
Leonardia stressed that the five medical doctors who were vaccinated are prominent doctors in the City.
“Our leading and prominent doctors have now been vaccinated. These are the people who understand what this is all about. These are the people who can comprehend the consequences of a vaccine and yet, they are here as guiding examples for us to follow,” the mayor said.
Sorongon said the next vaccination rollout on Monday [March 8] will be for the healthcare workers of Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital (CLMMRH) and Riverside Medical Center Inc. (RMCI).
“The doctors and specialists who were vaccinated during our first and second rollout are safe. They’re okay and they have no problem at all, so why should we be afraid?” Sorongon said.
He added that the vaccines are necessary to eventually stop the spread of COVID-19.
Dr. Hector Gayares, chief executive officer of Adventist International Healthcare System, said that healthcare workers should lead the vaccination in Bacolod.
Gayares, one of the five doctors who were inoculated during the first Sinovac rollout, said that 48 hours post-vaccination, he is “doing perfectly fine” and is healthy.
“Data shows that there are already 65 million individuals who were vaccinated against COVID-19. Medical professionals should lead this program. It’s better to have 50-percent protection than nothing at all,” said Gayares.
He added: “The best vaccine is the one available at hand.”
The vaccine rollout at the BCGC observes the standard procedure, according to Sorongon. There were areas for registration, screening, counseling and consent, vaccination, monitoring, and post-vaccination.
OIC-City Health Officer Dr. Edwin Miraflor said that the intended vaccination flow and standard procedure were achieved.
Miraflor and Sorongon prepared the DOH-approved vaccination plan of Bacolod City.
(News & photo courtesy of Bacolod City Public Information Office)