A number of senior health officials on Thursday received the second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine in Qatar.
The Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) shared, on social media, videos of Dr Abdullatif al-Khal, chair of the National Health Strategic Group on Covid-19 and head of Infectious Diseases at Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC); Sheikh Dr Mohamed al-Thani, director of Public Health at the MoPH; Dr Hamad Eid al-Romaihi, co-chair of the National Pandemic Preparedness Committee and director of Health Protection and Communicable Diseases at the MoPH; and Dr Muna al-Maslamani, medical director of the Communicable Disease Center, HMC, all of whom received the second dose on Thursday.
The videos also carried messages by the health sector leaders.
Dr Muna al-Maslamani.
Qatar had on Wednesday started administering the second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. The vaccination drive began on December 23, 2020, and the second dose of the vaccine is given after three weeks.
The first two people who received the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine in Qatar, Dr Abdullah al-Kubaisi and Dr Mohamed Harb Frazat, were given the second dose at the Al Wajba Health Centre on Wednesday.
The MoPH has urged all people who have taken the first dose of the vaccine to comply and take the second dose on the specified date, while continuing to adhere to the Covid-19 precautionary measures.
Dr Abdullatif al-Khal.
In his message, Dr al-Khal said: "I received the second dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, and encourage everyone who took the first dose to commit to taking the second dose of the vaccine. I also encourage those on the list of priorities in the first phase of vaccination to get inoculated."
Dr al-Khal added that the side effects of the vaccine are minor.
Dr Sheikh Mohamed said, "Today, we got the second dose of the Pfizer vaccine after 21 days exactly. We thank all the people who are working behind this and vaccinating us...we advise everyone to remember the timing of the vaccine and come at the right time." This, he explained, was important for the efficacy of the vaccine.
With an increase in the vaccination capacity, everyone should be ready to get their shot in the coming weeks, he added.
Dr Hamad Eid al-Romaihi.
"I got my second dose of the Covid vaccine," said Dr al-Romaihi, stressing that he was confident the vaccine was safe and effective. "I encourage everyone, in particular the high-risk groups, the elderly and patients with chronic diseases, to receive their vaccine."
Dr al-Maslamani said, "I got the second shot of the Covid-19 vaccine. I am fine. I would just emphasise that anyone who received the first dose is supposed to take the second dose on time, which is after 21 days, to protect yourself and your family."
She noted that people need to apply all the Covid-19 precautions even if they receive the second dose of the vaccine. These include social distancing, wearing of masks and washing of hands frequently to avoid the spread of the Covid-19 infection.
