PGH head receives first ever Covid vaccine jab in P’pines

MANILA: Philippine General Hospital head Gerardo Legaspi on Monday received the first dose of Covid-19 vaccine in the Philippines, just several hours after a batch of doses from the Chinese company Sinovac arrived.

In a live feed of the vaccination via PTV, Legaspi received the CoronaVac jab from PGH nurse Sherlock Santos.

After being inoculated, he presented a certificate showing that he received the vaccine.

“I talked to my wife and child yesterday and because they are hyper-allergic, I might recommend this for them,” Legaspi said.

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Second to be vaccinated was Dr. Edsel Salvana, who is part of the Department of Health Technical Advisory Group and also a PGH doctor.

Next in line was Food and Drug Administration Director General Eric Domingo.

Legaspi and the other vaccine recipients will be monitored for 30 minutes for possible side effects.

Also set to be vaccinated at PGH were Metropolitan Manila Development Authority Chairman Benhur Abalos and vaccine czar Sec. Carlito Galvez Jr. Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque was also seen being screened for the Sinovac vaccine.

During his speech before the vaccination, Galvez said that while there are other vaccines with higher efficacy rate, There is no such best vaccine because the best vaccine is the one that is effective and efficient that arrived earlier.

PGH spokesman Dr. Jonas Del Rosario, who was earlier reported to be in line to be the first to receive the dose, said he was not vaccinated after latest tests showed he had a high amount of antibodies after recovering from Covid-19 last year.

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He said he expects more health workers to receive the jab after 90 percent of PGH workers said they preferred a different vaccine.

The Philippines is the last Southeast Asian country to receive initial vaccine supplies, fueling concerns over recovery prospects for a consumption-driven economy that suffered its worst slump on record last year, hit by lengthy coronavirus lockdowns.

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