The 5,000 doses of the second dose Sputnik V vaccines which arrived in Guyana on Friday last are being administered from today.
This was announced by Health Minister Dr Frank Anthony during today’s Covid-19 briefing.
He noted that the vaccines will be available in all regions of the country by the end of the week. The second doses are currently available along the coastland.
The vaccines will only be administered to persons who would have received their first dose Sputnik V in April and May.
The Sputnik V vaccine, unlike AstraZeneca and Sinopharm, has a second dose that is different from the first dose.
At first, the country was administering the second shot within four weeks of the first dose, but this period has now been extended to 12 weeks. The Health Minister had said that this extension is in keeping with information provided by the Gamaleya Research Centre, which developed the Sputnik V vaccine.
Meanwhile, to date, 287,837 persons or 59.1% of the adult population have received a first dose Covid vaccine. On the other hand, 147,128 persons or 30.2% of the adult population are fully vaccinated.
Dr Anthony said he wants to see a bigger uptake in persons taking their second doses.
“We’d like to see a bigger uptake, there are people who received their first dose but haven’t come back for their second dose,” he expressed.
“You’re not fully protected unless you are fully vaccinated,” the Minister added.
