424 officers and soldiers serving the coming 6th Vietnam-China Border Defense Friendship Exchange event were injected with AstraZeneca dose on April 15.

Medical staff checking blood pressure for one officer prior to vaccination (Photo: Bao Quang Ninh/ TTO)

The vaccination campaign is carried out under the coordination of Quang Ninh Provincial Military Command and the Military Medical Hospital No. 7. It aims at proactively strengthening anti-pandemic measures, intensifying prevention and control efforts throughout the 6th Vietnam-China Border Defense Friendship Exchange which takes place in late April.

The 424 officers and soldiers are from the Provincial Military Command, the Provincial Border Guard Command, the militia force of Ha Long city, Mong Cai and Binh Lieu. All have their health thoroughly checked before getting the jab. Those whose health is ineligible won’t get the vaccine.

Officers and soldiers are allowed to rest on the spot and have their health further monitored. They are instructed in detail about possible side effects post-injection and must inform the nearest military medical unit or facility for prompt treatment.

To date, their health is all normal.

One people getting the shot (Photo: Bao Quang Ninh/ TTO)

Earlier on April 9, 60 officers and soldiers in Quang Nam province’s Armed Force are given the first dose of AstraZeneca vaccine.

60 officers and soldiers in Quang Nam province’s Armed Force are given the first dose of AstraZeneca vaccine on April 9.

The 60 recipients are all conducting missions at centralized quarantine facilities managed by the Provincial Military Command. All medical procedures are performed by military medical staff.

This vaccination program took place at CK42 Hospital, under the cooperation of Quang Nam’s Military Command and Military Hospital No.17.

All officers and soldiers fully followed vaccination procedures prior to injection, including medical declaration, temperature measurement, vaccination consent and pre-vaccination screening form. Each then was given the first shot of AstraZeneca vaccine produced in Korea. After the injection, all were required to stay at the facility for 24 hours for further health monitoring.

Over 60 officers and soldiers were given the jab on April 9 (Photo: VOV)

Meanwhile on April 1 morning, border officers and soldiers patrolling at border gates and checkpoints in Tay Ninh province were also listed as a prioritized group for nearly 1,000 doses of Covid-19 vaccine. Dozens of soldiers were also given the AstraZeneca jab.

The vaccination program is organized by the Vietnam Border Guard, Army Medical Department - Ministry of Defense and 175 Military Hospital.

The 175 Military Hospital has all areas, including registration, health screening, vaccination, post-vaccination monitoring area, well-supplied with medical equipment met with health authorities’ safety standards.

Vaccinated officers and soldiers are given a safe vaccination certificate.

On March 30, the first 20 Vietnamese high-achieving athletes in three sports of wrestling, taekwondo, and judo were inoculated with the Covid-19 vaccine at Hanoi-based 108 Military Central Hospital.

Every day, there are 20 athletes to be injected with the vaccine according to the approved list, said the Vietnam Sports Administration.

Athletes of taekwondo, judo, fencing, wrestling, boxing, gymnastics, athletics, weightlifting and swimming participating in the Tokyo Olympic qualifiers will be the first vaccine recipients in the sports field. This is the Government's priority for athletes implementing international missions, Baotintuc reported.

Last week, the Health Ministry called for all localities to quickly make lists of priority groups for free Covid-19 vaccinations because the AstraZeneca vaccine has a shelf-life of just six months.

Besides medical staff and frontline workers against Covid-19, others in the priority list that have been approved by the government include teachers, diplomatic personnel, customs and immigration officers, those working in essential services like transport, people aged 65 and above, the poor and those with chronic diseases that make them more vulnerable to the disease caused by the virus, as reported by VNE.

People who are seeking to study or work abroad or are living in pandemic-hit areas are also on the priority list for Covid-19 vaccination.

Vietnam aims to secure around 150 million vaccine doses to cover 70 percent of its 98 million population this year. For this it has sought assistance from the EU, the U.S., Japan, China, India and Russia in accessing vaccine sources.

So far, Vietnam has approved AstraZeneca's ChAdOx1 vaccine and Russia's Sputnik V Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use.

Jasmine Le