In Singapore, more than 113,000 people are receiving the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine: MOH

SINGAPORE: The first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine was received by more than 113,000 people, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said in an update on Thursday (Jan 28).

More than 50 were also given their second dose and completed the complete vaccination regimen.

As vaccination operations continue, the numbers are expected to go up in the coming weeks, MOH said.

Polyclinics and selected Preparedness Clinics for Public Health (PHPCs) will also act as sites for vaccination. At nine polyclinics and 21 PHPCs, seniors can currently be vaccinated.

From next Monday, all 20 polyclinics across Singapore will also begin offering COVID-19 vaccinations, MOH said. 

Vaccinations for senior citizens aged 70 and above began on Wednesday at Ang Mo Kio and Tanjong Pagar.

More than 250 were vaccinated on the first day, MOH said.

Senior vaccination sign-ups for COVID-19 have been encouraging, the ministry said, adding that it expects more senior citizens to sign up in the coming days.

“As of Jan 27, we have sent personalised letters to more than 10,000 seniors in Ang Mo Kio and Tanjong Pagar, and more than one third of them have booked their appointments within two days of receiving the invitation,” MOH said.

“The remaining seniors in these areas will receive their invitation letters in the coming week.”

From mid-February, these letters will gradually be sent out to seniors across Singapore.

More vaccination centers will be set up over the next few weeks to ensure seniors can receive their required jabs conveniently. For greater accessibility, these will be located in’ high population catchment areas and/or along major public transport routes.’

“In total, there will be around 40 vaccination centres, with each vaccination centre planned for an estimated capacity of 2,000 vaccinations per day,” the ministry said.

The MOH and the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) have said that the safety profile of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine is being closely monitored as it is being given to our population.
“Among the more than 113,000 individuals who have received the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, HSA has received 432 adverse event reports from healthcare professionals as of 27 January 2021,” said MOH.