Singapore is preparing to roll out COVID-19 vaccines, but the city’s state’s remarkable success in controlling the virus raises the question of whether they should take the jobs with them.
In a country where compliance with the authorities is generally high, some Singaporeans fear that the potential side effects – even the smallest ones – may not be worth the risk in everyday matters almost zero and deaths among the lowest in the world.
“Singapore is doing very well,” said Aishwarya Kris, who is in her 40s and doesn’t want to be shot.
“I doubt the vaccine will help. ”
An opinion poll by local newspaper The Straits Times found in early December that 48 per cent of respondents said they would receive a vaccine when it became available and 34 per cent would stay between six and 12 months.
But the government wants to open up more of the economy with the help of the vaccine in a country that relies on travel and trade.
“Singapore is experiencing its own success,” said Dr Leong Hoe Nam, an infectious disease specialist at Mount Elizabeth Hospital in the city.
To show that the vaccine is safe, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, 68, said he and his colleagues would be among those who received the early sightings.
The first batch of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine arrived this week and Singapore expects to have enough vaccines for its 5.7 million people by the third quarter of 2021.
The first batch of COVID-19 vaccine arrived in Singapore on Monday [Betty Chua/Ministry of Communications and Informations via Reuters]
The first vaccines will be given to priority groups such as health workers in the next month or two, but it will be some time before it is offered to the general public, said Lawrence Wong, minister in charge of Singapore’s virus action group . Vaccinations will be free and voluntary.
“They will also be distributed to the Singapore population over a number of months, depending on issues such as the supply and delivery of the vaccines,” he said.
Civic duty
Many Singaporeans said they are ready to take the pictures – not just to prevent disease but hope they can travel again. For others, it is a civic duty.
“I’m the one in the family who goes out every day to work, so it’s a responsible thing to do,” said Jeff Tan, a 39-year-old photographer.
Singapore took immediate action after the first reported cases of the virus and although blinded by tens of thousands of cases in migrant workers’ bedrooms, it has brought the revolution under control. .
Singaporeans generally accept vaccines, with nearly 90 percent taking up a vital childhood job, said Dr. Hsu Li Yang at the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health at the National University of Singapore.
But there are concerns about a new vaccine that uses state-of-the-art technology and has undergone a speedy development and approval process. Adoption of a vaccine usually takes time, he said.
Even three nurses told the Reuters news agency under an anonymous condition that they would prefer not to be vaccinated.
The Singapore drug regulator said it granted approval after evaluating data submitted by Pfizer-BioNTech to show that the vaccine meets the required safety, efficacy and quality standards and that the benefits are greater. than the known hazards.
Singapore residents have adopted mascara consumption and other measures to control COVID-19 [Loriene Perera/Reuters]
The Pfizer vaccine has been linked to a few cases of severe allergic reactions as it has been distributed in the United Kingdom and the United States. But it did not reverse any long-term adverse effects in large-scale clinical trials.
John Han, sales manager, said he wanted to wait for 80 percent of the population to get vaccinated without side effects.
“If an option is given, I may not accept it. I don’t mind putting on the mask, being safe, avoid crowded places, ”said Han, 40.