Written by Bertha Muniz
Posted on 05/20/2021 15:26 | Updated 5/20/2021 15:27
Campos – Campos dos Goytacazes will receive a Pfizer vaccine against Covid-19. The information was confirmed after an agreement between the State Health Secretariat (SES) and the Council of Municipal Health Secretariats (COSEMS), whereby a batch of 57,330 doses sent by the Ministry of Health to the state were determined to be distributed to municipalities with a population of more than 150,000 people.
The Pfizer vaccine is due to be distributed to the municipality next week, at a date yet to be confirmed by SES. The announcement was greeted with great enthusiasm by the Ministry of Health, which has already indicated that it has the structure to receive the vaccine, by Norte Fluminense State University (UENF), which has so-called “super-freezers”, since the storage should be at -15 degrees. ° C to -25 ° C, within a maximum period of 14 days.
“We welcome the arrival of the Pfizer vaccine, it is one of the vaccines with the highest effectiveness rate in the world. A very safe vaccine especially for pregnant women. Its arrival will change our vaccination policy, as it will occupy a specific place for immunization,” said Sharpelle Curie, Undersecretary for Primary Care, Surveillance and Promotion the health.
The Undersecretary also clarifies that at this first moment, the Phizer vaccine will not be used to vaccinate the general population, but specific groups, including pregnant women and others who are more vulnerable to infection, will launch their vaccination strategy once the municipality receives the vaccine.
In addition to the complexity of preservation, Charbell Kury explains that Pfizer vaccine has another peculiarity. It is a vaccine that needs to be diluted. It does not come ready to use like the others. It needs a saline solution to dilute it, and once combined, it must be used right away. Another detail is that it needs a specific cold chain that guarantees the greatest validity of the vaccine, ”explains the Undersecretary.
Given the specifics of storage and use of the vaccine, UENF has already fitted the refrigerator with a temperature of -80 ° C as well as a room, which is under the auspices of the Chief Sanitary Control and Professor at UENF, Vera Cardoso de Mello, which will be used by the Health Secretariat. Storing in this freezer allows the vaccine to last six months, while if we store it in the regular refrigerator from 2 to 8 degrees, we will have to use it in five days. “The UENF structure allows us to quietly design a vaccine implementation policy and to do so moderately and calmly within the priority groups that will be decided by management,” Sharble added.
