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Thursday March 28, 2024

Extending gap between two doses of vaccines: What caused Pakistan to revise guidelines for double-dose Chinese vaccines?

The new guidelines caused confusion and indignation among the people

By M. Waqar Bhatti
June 22, 2021
A vial of Chinese Sinopharm vaccine.
A vial of Chinese Sinopharm vaccine.

KARACHI: Issuing revised guidelines for the double-dose Chinese vaccines Sinopharm and Sinovac vaccines, the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination (NHS,R&C) Monday said the gap between two doses would now be six weeks instead of four weeks, causing confusion and indignation among thousands of people who had approached the vaccination centers for their second jabs.

Thousands of people were refused their scheduled second dose of Sinopharm and Sinovac on Monday after the vaccination resumed following its suspension on Sunday due to shortage of vaccines. Now those needing the second jab are being advised to come after two weeks following revision of the guidelines related to the timeline between the two shots.

The new guidelines caused confusion and indignation among the people, who fear that delay could render their first dose ineffective or deprive them of timely immune response of the vaccines.

Confirming issuing the revised guidelines, for both the Chinese vaccines, Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Health Dr. Faisal Sultan said plenty of Sinovac doses available in the country, while more were coming, but added the revised guidelines would provide some flexibility in the timing. “Plenty of SV are available; more are in the pipeline. It would provide some flexibility in timing. Will help in some situations,” SAPM Dr. Sultan responded when asked if the shortage of vaccines was behind the revision of guidelines for the vaccines in Pakistan.

Pakistan received another shipment of 1.5 million doses of Sinovac vaccine from China on Sunday which were distributed among all the provinces and other federating units immediately allowing vaccination to resume at the main Covid-19 vaccination centers. But officials admitted they have limited stocks of Sinopharm vaccine left with center and the provinces, and the stockpile was not sufficient to cover the second dose of the vaccine, therefore people were being advised to come after two weeks for their second shot.

Confirming that shortage of vaccines was the main reason behind enhancing the gap between two doses, a senior official of the NHS,R&C said the shortage had compelled them to increase the gap between two doses but claimed "that instead of decreasing efficacy, delayed second dose could provide immunity." The “delayed second dose gives better immune response in general. China has successfully experienced that,” a senior NHS official claimed.

The NHS officials told The News that an agreement has been reached between Pakistan and Pfizer-BioNTech for supplying 13 million doses of Covid-19 mRNA vaccine by the end of July 2021. Similarly, Pakistan is also in the final stages of procuring 10 million doses of Russian Sputnik V. Its shipment is likely to reach Pakistan by the end of current month or first week of July, they added.