Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long visits the children at the Saint Paul General Hospital on November 4
Doctors at the Saint Paul General Hospital and the Vietnam National Children's Hospital held a meeting on November 16 to reassess the health of the 18 infants who were mistakenly given the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine at a healthcare centre in Quoc Oai District on November 3.
"After two weeks of close monitoring at Saint Paul General Hospital, the children are now in good health. Some who had fever, redness, and swelling at the injection site have recovered, and there have been no cases of anaphylaxis," a report at the meeting said. "Some are having digestive problems, runny noses, and Atopic dermatitis. The children have been given three tests on the third, seventh, and 10th day since the injection day and the results were normal."
After the meeting, doctors agreed to continue monitoring the children at the hospital for two more weeks. They will be given another test on the 21st day for reassessment.
Director of the Vietnam National Children's Hospital, Tran Minh Dien, said that the children could leave hospital after four weeks of monitoring if they are in good health. They would be given further check-ups once every month for the next 12 months since the injection day.
Eighteen children aged 2 to 6 months were mistakenly injected with the Pfizer-BioNtech Covid-19 Vaccine on November 3 at Yen Son Communal Healthcare Centre which was organising vaccinations for children aged 2 to 6 months. They planned to give the children the 5-in-1 or 6-in-1 vaccines to treat whooping cough, diphtheria, tetanus, polio, hepatitis B, and Haemophilic influenza type B diseases.
According to a report from the municipal health department, the medical staff mistakenly gave the Pfizer-BioNtech Covid-19 Vaccine to 18 children due to negligence.
The department has reported and asked for consultancy from leading local and international health experts from the World Health Organisation and UNICEF.
Hanoi has not yet started giving the Covid-19 vaccine for children. According to the city's plan, children aged 12-17 will receive the Covid-19 vaccine from the fourth quarter of this year. The exact time for vaccination would depend on the Ministry of Health’s vaccine distribution for the city, with the priority to be given to children aged 16-17 first.
