Guatemala Receives 103,680 Moderna Covid-19 Vaccine Doses to Combat New Variant

Guatemala received 103,680 doses of Moderna vaccines against covid-19, doses that could help mitigate a possible wave of infections of the new variant of the coronavirus that is present in Guatemala, according to the recommendation of Iris Cazali, epidemiologist.

The new vaccines that will be used against the pandemic came as a donation from the Swiss government, reported the Ministry of Public Health and Social Assistance (MSPAS).

Regarding the distribution of this new batch of vaccines, the director of Integrated Health Services Networks, Manolo Vicente, reported that a circular has already been sent to the 29 Directorates of Integrated Health Services Networks -DDRISS-, so that they can approach the National Center for Biologicals and obtain the number of doses necessary to assist Guatemalans.

“We start with the closest Departmental Directorates. Over the course of this week we hope to have one hundred percent supplied, so that we can begin vaccination in the Health centers and posts that the Ministry of Health has,” he commented.

According to the authorities, for the use of the vaccines, priority will be given to the population that has been left pending, especially in large departments such as Alta Verapaz, San Marcos and Huehuetenango.

The clinical judgment of people who can access the vaccine will also be used, including the highest-risk population. In that sense, it refers to “the group from 12 years of age and the population over 65 years of age, also giving priority to people who suffer from hypertension, diabetes or another chronic disease that could put their lives at risk,” he stated. .

They require another vaccine

“Covid never left; “Covid stayed with us,” said specialist Cazali, explaining how the virus has remained in the country for more than three years, as certain patterns of the disease have been identified, such as the months in which peaks or waves of cases.

“In we have detected two waves of infections: one is between May, June and July and the other is December, January and February; These two peaks continue to hit in Guatemala because we have a greater number of covid cases, but fortunately it has not been proportional to hospitalizations,” added the expert.

A few weeks ago, the MSPAS reported that there was already a new variant of covid-19 in the country, which is usually more contagious than the previous ones. “A new variant was derived from omicron and the difference between it is its transmissibility; In other words, it was a much more contagious strain. And now JN1 is coming out, which is transmitted much faster,” he stated.

For the epidemiologist, even though Guatemalans have had to coexist with the virus for more than three years, it is not prudent to be overconfident about the disease, since it has shown that it is still dangerous.

“To consider that it is now a mild disease and that what it gives us is a big flu is to minimize the issue; “It continues to be a disease that affects risk groups with high fevers, general discomfort, respiratory problems, sore throat and in some cases, even bronchitis,” he indicated.

Cazali believes that the best thing people can do, despite already having a complete vaccination schedule, is to look for a new booster.

“Let’s think that the more protected we are, not only with sweaters, scarves and caps, but the more we protect ourselves with vaccines, the less chance we will have of getting sick; So it is highly recommended to get vaccinated again,” he concluded.

2023-12-26 20:58:10
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