34,701 students in grades 8 and 9 across Da Nang from schools under the municipal Department of Education and Training along with educational establishments under the management of district-level people's committees, and 368 eligible adolescents over 12 years of age are already starting to get their first COVID-19 shots .

Eligible students in Da Nang will be offered a first dose of the Pfizer BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine from November 20 -22 as part of the city’s school-based COVID-19 vaccination program, the municipal Department of Health has announced. Beneficiaries also include foreigners and overseas Vietnamese who are staying in Da Nang.

Previously, the city had postponed the scheduled November 11 roll out of COVID-19 immunization for Years 8 and 9 students. Therefore, the immunization program for eligible students was not carried out in the city from November 11-17 was planned earlier.

The reason for the postponement of the immunization program for these students was incomplete update of the students’ identification codes on the National Immunization Management System.

Vaccinating school students will help to reduce the need for them to have time off school and to reduce the risk of spread of COVID-19 within their schools. The school vaccination program will provide protection to children who will be vaccinated and help to reduce disruption to face to face education after schools reopen.

All vaccination locations will do temperature checks on people before entry, allowing space for social distancing and a 30-minute recovery time. Strictest health and safety measures, especially the 5K recommendations of the Ministry of Health, will be put in place at these venues.

Protocols have been established for the management of adverse reactions following immunization. Healthcare workers are prepared to recognize and treat allergic reactions.

Reporting by LE HUNG – translating by H.L