Qatar has started to administer the second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine from today.

It was announced earlier that individuals who take this COVID-19 vaccine will require another dose 21 days after the first shot.

Said to be the largest vaccination drive in the country's history, Qatar launched the first phase of the COVID-19 drive on December 23, 2020.

79-year-old Qatari citizen and a former president of Qatar University, Dr Abdulla Al Kubaisi, was the first person in the country to get the COVID-19 vaccine. He received the second dose of the vaccine today, Gulf Times reported.

#Qatar has started administering the second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine from today. The country started the vaccination drive on December 23, 2020 and the second dose of the vaccine is given after three weeks. pic.twitter.com/pKDBMxEqae

— Gulf-Times (@GulfTimes_QATAR) January 13, 2021

No serious side effects of this vaccine have been reported in the country so far, a senior health official confirmed earlier.

Speaking to Qatar Television, Dr Yousuf Al Maslamani, medical director of Hamad General Hospital, said there is no reason for citizens and residents of Qatar to be concerned about the safety of the COVID-19 vaccine based on the long-established record of quality services led by MoPH.

The senior health official highlighted that thousands of individuals in Qatar have received the first shot of the COVID-19 vaccine already.

The first phase of Qatar's COVID-19 vaccination campaign will run until January 31, 2021. 

During the first phase, priority will be given to: 1. People aged 65 years and above. 2. People with severe chronic conditions. 3. Healthcare workers with repeated exposure to COVID-19.

At present, those who are eligible to receive the vaccine will be contacted directly by Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC) by SMS or phone call in order to fix an appointment.

All community members who do not fall under the priority groups have been asked to wait until it is their turn.

MoPH had earlier confirmed that it is working with pharmaceutical companies to ensure the next shipment of the vaccine arrives in the country "as early as possible in 2021."

"Everyone who needs to be vaccinated will be able to do so throughout the year," MoPH had said.

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Cover Image Credit: Al Watan

Source: Gulf Times