BAKU, Azerbaijan, Aug. 12
Trend:
All conditions for storing COVID-19 vaccines (CoronaVac, AstraZeneca, Sputnik V, and Pfizer) used in Azerbaijan in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions have been created, Deputy Health Minister of Azerbaijan Viktor Gasimov said, Trend reports citing the Azerbaijani Ministry of Health.
The deputy minister was commenting on the unprofessional statements about the vaccination process voiced recently in social networks.
“First of all, I would like to note that vaccination is the most effective way to fight infectious diseases. It is a scientifically proven method of diseases spread prevention around the world and is considered one of the greatest advances in medicine,” Gasimov said.
“Vaccination has proven to be the most important preventive measure in the fight against COVID-19 around the world, and it is surprising that some "experts" question this claim. Today, all countries of the world are engaged in solving issues related to the supply of vaccines to ensure the protection of public health. I regret to note that at present, not all countries have equal access to vaccines, and some states are still not provided with sufficient vaccines,” the official said.
“As is known, the vaccination process began in Azerbaijan on January 18. Thus, Azerbaijan was one of the first in the region to start a campaign to vaccinate the population. Thanks to the personal authority of President Ilham Aliyev in the international arena, a sufficient number of doses of vaccine preparations were purchased from various vaccine manufacturers. Thus, the country has formed the necessary supply of vaccines against COVID-19. To date, more than 5.5 million doses of vaccines have been used in Azerbaijan," the deputy health minister said.
“In their speeches on social networks, some "experts" raised questions about the storage conditions of vaccines. Indeed, according to the instructions of the vaccine manufacturers, proper storage of vaccines is very important in terms of maintaining their quality and achieving the desired effect,” Gasimov noted.
“In our country, all the necessary measures were taken to conduct a large-scale vaccination campaign. If other vaccines require a storage temperature of +2-8 °C, then Pfizer should be stored at -70 °C. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, vaccines, which are supposed to be stored in such conditions, were not used in our country. For this reason, 10 freezers were purchased and installed for the Ministry of Health's Innovation and Supply Center before the Pfizer vaccine was delivered to the country. Thus, at the present time for the storage of vaccines used in our country (CoronaVac, AstraZeneca, Sputnik V, and Pfizer), all conditions have been created in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions,” the deputy minister noted.
“In addition, in the absence of adequate storage conditions for vaccines, complications must have arisen after vaccination. However, from the first day of the campaign, not a single case of complications during vaccination and the post-vaccination reaction was registered. In rare cases, there are mild side effects, such as soreness at the injection site or some weakness for one to two days after vaccination. This is a natural reaction that can occur against any vaccine and is due to the fact that the vaccine triggers an immune response in the human body,” the official said.
“I consider it inappropriate to express such an unprofessional opinion on the successful vaccination campaign in our country,” Gasimov said.
“I take this opportunity to urge the population to take a more active part in the vaccination campaign in order to quickly overcome the coronavirus infection and protect the health of the country's citizens,” he said.
