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Second dose of COVID-19 vaccinations to start at the end of April - GHS

The second dose for Ghanaians who have received their first shots of the AstraZeneca vaccine will commence by the end of April, the Ghana Health Service (GHS) has announced.

President Nana Akufo-Addo  taking the COVID-19 vaccine

According to the GHS, the second batch of the vaccinations will be done till the end of May.

This was disclosed by the Director General of the GHS, Dr. Patrick Kuma Aboagye on Accra based Joy FM.

According to him, the longer one’s vaccination status which is about 12 weeks, the better.

Reacting to comments on the use of different vaccines for immunization, the GHS Director-General intimated that there is no research or evidence that promotes the use of different vaccines though they may possess similar antigens.

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“There is no scientific evidence now that if you take first shot AstraZeneca, you can take Sputnik second shot but I know there are studies going on to see how it works. So until those results come out, we cannot propose that you will be able to take another vaccine. We need to be cautious to ensure that we have strong evidence on safety and efficacy before we can go ahead,” he said.

He disclosed that the country has procured some vaccines from South Africa and the private sector is also working to procure more vaccines.

“Yes, we are not solely relying on COVAX. We are doing other bilateral organizations. It is not just COVAX but there are also other countries that have stock. We just received some from South Africa through MTN. All these arrangements are going on to be able to get vaccines while we wait for the 6.4 million doses from COVAX within whatever period. The government is also engaging other bilateral, not just Sputnik but others who may have the vaccine.

“There are countries that have vaccines they are not using – the AstraZeneca locked up in countries that may not use them. There is all manner of arrangements that are being done so we are not just relying on.. because we know we are going to have a challenge with COVAX coming in. There is also the private sector approach. Yes, we are all worried but I believe that because we didn’t put all our eggs in one basket, we still hope that we might still be able to get vaccines,” he added.

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