A little over 1.52 million people are waiting for the second jab
Administration of the second dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine at centres in the capital and Dhaka district will resume from Monday, says the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
Health-workers at vaccination centres across the country will start administering it from August 7, DGHS Director Shamsul Haque told an online bulletin on Sunday.
A little over 1.52 million people are waiting for the second dose of the vaccine, he said.
“We have already received over 1 million doses from Japan under the Covax scheme. Another shipment of 600,000 shots is expected to arrive on August 3,” said the senior health directorate official.
Also Read - Covid-19: Bangladesh receives 781,000 more doses of AstraZeneca vaccine from Japan
He said that citizens will have to take their second jab from the same hospital or inoculation centre where they were administered their first vaccine shot.
Those who have already received an SMS for the second dose, but didn’t get the vaccine, will be able to complete their inoculation by showing the same message, he added.
Shamsul Haque emphasized that people who have received the first dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine made by SII will receive the same for their second dose.
“Those who got the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine as their first jab must take the same vaccine as their second shot. Both the doses will be of the same vaccine. Mixing can cause damage.”
Responding to a question from reporters, Prof Nazmul Islam, spokesperson for the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), said that ignoring the health safety rules could increase the risk of infection.
“The way the workers of different factories are returning to Dhaka, there is a huge chance of rapid transmission. Those who are healthy can also be infected in such situations,” he added.
Also Read - DGHS: Second dose of AstraZeneca to resume soon
On Saturday, Bangladesh received the second consignment of AstraZeneca vaccine doses from Japan under the Covax facility.
The second consignment contains 781,320 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine.
The third consignment, containing 616,780 doses of the vaccine, is scheduled to arrive in Dhaka on Tuesday.
The government started mass vaccination through Covishield (AstraZeneca) vaccine last February.
However, 1,521,000 people did not get the second dose after the stock of the jabs purchased from India ran out.
Around 5.8 million people received the first dose and 4.2 million people took the second dose of the vaccine so far.
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