Union Health Ministry Secretary Rajesh Bhushan had said 30 million people have been included in prioritized population groups, involving one million health workers, two million people from the police department
New Delhi: As India prepares for a massive Covid vaccination program, health experts said Sunday that 21 days is an ideal gap between the first and second booster doses, and those vaccinated should maintain the same health hygiene as they are supposed to do. sans vaccine for a certain period of time.
Union Health Ministry Secretary Rajesh Bhushan had said that 30 million people have been included in prioritized population groups, which implies one million health workers, two million police department staff, forces armed forces, the home guard, the civil defense organization and 27 million people over 50 years of age and less than 50 with comorbidities.
The government is expected to launch its first vaccines in the coming weeks with at least three candidates under active consideration by India’s drug regulator.
According to Dr. Manoj Goel, Director of Pulmonology at Fortis Hospital in Gurugram, after taking the first dose, the second dose should ideally be taken on day 21.
“After vaccination, one can resume normal daily activities. In between there are also no guidelines for sitting at home and people can go about their usual activities by taking basic precautions like social distancing, wearing a mask and frequent hand sanitizing, ”Goel told IANS.
The Union Health Ministry had said that 1.54 lakh vaccinators or assistant nurse midwives will administer the Covid-19 vaccine to people under the universal immunization program when the vaccination process begins.
According to Dr. Jyoti Mutta, Senior Microbiology Consultant at Sri Balaji Action Medical Institute in New Delhi, there are several vaccines that have different schedules and these vaccine schedules are determined through clinical trials.
“Speaking of the Pfizer vaccine in this regard, two doses 21 days apart and two doses 28 days apart are suggested for the AstraZeneca vaccine. Also, proper rest and precautions are suggested during this period to avoid infection and proper care, ”he told IANS.
Dr. Mutta also emphasized that staying home is not particularly defined as a precautionary measure, but thorough care is recommended.
“It is important to take precautions such as wearing a mask, social distancing and hand hygiene to avoid infection,” he noted.
Dr. Neha Gupta, Infectious Disease Physician at Medanta Hosptial in Gurugram, told IANS: “The vaccine requires two doses 21 days apart, and generally the protective efficacy is seven days after the second dose. Therefore, patients should continue to take precautions after the first dose of vaccine. “
There are up to eight candidate Covid vaccines in different stages of clinical trials that could be ready for authorization in the near future.
Vaccines include Covaxin, Astrazeneca and Oxford University developed and Serum Institute of India manufactured Covishield, ZyCoV-D from Zydus Cadila, Russian Sputnik-V vaccine candidate, NVX-CoV2373 from IBS, HGCO19 from Geneva, and two unlabeled vaccines: the recombinant protein antigen vaccine based on Biological E Limited and the inactivated rabies vector platform from Bharat Biotech Limited.
The Pune-based Serum Institute of India and Hyderabad-based pharmaceutical company Bharat Biotech have already approached the Controller General of Medicines of India (DCGI) for emergency use authorization for their potential vaccines. Covid-19.