Measures will be in place to monitor COVID-19 vaccine side-effects: Health Department

The Health Department says measures will be in place to monitor people for possible side-effects after receiving the COVID-19 vaccine.

 Government wants to vaccinate over 40 million South Africans by the end of the year in a bid to achieve herd immunity against the virus.

The first one million doses of the vaccines are expected to arrive in the country before the end of the month.

Speaking during a webinar organised by the African National Congress Progressive Business Forum, a member of the COVID-19  Partnership Task Team, Dr Aquina Thulare says health professionals will be on site to deal with any eventuality during the vaccination process.

Mixed feelings

Some South Africans, among them health care workers, have mixed feelings about a COVID-19 vaccine.

They say conflicting messages on social media, especially about the side effects of the vaccine, make them skeptical about its efficacy.

In the video below, SABC Reporter Lerato Fekisi spoke to health care workers and residents in Port Elizabeth:

PODCAST: Senior Post-doctoral Fellow at the University of KwaZulu-Natal’s Health, Law and Bioethics research group, Dr Marietjie Botes, speaks about key regulatory frameworks to ensure vaccine is safe before roll-out.

EXPLAINER VIDEO: South Africa’s vaccine rollout strategy