221 Covid-19 vaccine doses wasted in Central Visayas

CENTRAL Visayas has received a total of 3,670,380 doses of mixed brands of Covid-19 vaccines as of Monday, Sept. 27, 2021, and of these only 221 vaccine doses have been wasted.

Dr. Mary Jean Loreche, Visayas Covid-19 Vaccination Operations Center (VVOC) spokesperson, gave these figures along with a rundown of the new vaccine arrivals in the region.

Loreche said 221 doses of Covid-19 vaccines regionwide had been wasted as of Sept. 26.

Of these, 78 were wasted in Bohol, 19 in Cebu Province, 18 in Negros Oriental, one in Siquijor, 101 in Cebu City, three in Lapu-Lapu City, and one in Mandaue City.

For the 101 doses wasted in Cebu City, 14 were from local government unit vaccine initiatives and 87 from private vaccination initiatives.

“On wastage, I’d like to clarify that there is no intent from our vaccinating teams to have this wastage. In any activities, there may be factors that are beyond control like the volume in vial and sometimes the condition of the vials itself,” she said.

She said among the most commonly seen factors on this wastage in a multi-dose vial is that the number of vaccinees are lacking because of non-appearance of scheduled vaccinees.

Also, once the vaccines, upon examination by the team, are found questionable in appearance like when there is discoloration, these vaccines will not be used.

“Upon aspiration, there may be insufficient volume, so instead of say, good for two persons, then it becomes good for one only,” she said.

She said with the expertise and the experiences of the team, they are upbeat that wastage attributable to aspiration will not happen anymore.

“However, as to vial or vaccine issues like changes in color or presence of precipitates or insufficient volume, then we need to return these to the warehouse for proper coordination and checking with our quality assurance in charge and that of the manufacturer,” she added.

On the no shows, Loreche expressed optimism that vaccination rates will improve once more sectors of the population are allowed to be vaccinated.

As for the number of Covid-19 vaccines that had arrived in Central Visayas, Loreche said Sinovac accounted for the most number of deliveries in the region at 1,962,440 doses, out of the 3,670,380 total doses of various brands received in the region.

New arrivals

Loreche also reported on the new vaccine arrivals to the region.

She said majority or 16,380 of the 46,800 doses of Pfizer vaccines that were delivered in Cebu last week were allocated for Cebu City.

Mandaue City and Lapu-Lapu City were allocated 7,020 doses each; Talisay City and Minglanilla, 4,680 doses each; and Consolacion, Cordova and Liloan, 2,340 doses each.

For Sinovac, Cebu City was allocated 24,000 doses; Mandaue City, 5,000 doses; Lapu-Lapu City, 4,000 doses; Talisay City and Cordova, 2,000 doses each: and Liloan, 4,000 doses. (WBS)