Covid Vaccine: Professor Jonathan Van-Tam Addresses Jab Safety Concerns on ITV News Panel in Q & A

See Complete: Covid Vaccine Q & A with Professor Jonathan Vantam

Deputy Chief Medical Officer of England addressed the concerns of the ITV News Panel directly. COVID-19 It’s a vaccine, but I’m worried about its safety and speed of development.

During an in-depth Q & A session, Professor Jonathan Vantam, from a panel of four, said whether safety was compromised in order to find the vaccine quickly, concerns surrounding side effects, jabs were clinically vulnerable, and all. Age and ethnicity, and how long can it take for life to return to normal?

Q & A took place in front of UK regulators Approved Pfizer / BioNTech Jab for use starting next week And came after Exclusive polls conducted for ITV news Concerns about the potential side effects of the Covid-19 vaccine have been found to be the main reason people do not want to be vaccinated against respiratory illness.

A poll of 2,090 UK adults conducted by Savanta ComRes from November 20 to 22 found that two in three (67%) were “highly likely” to be vaccinated when approved and available. I found out. Five (23%) said it was “unlikely” to do so, and another 10% said it was “not sure”.

Of those who “dislike” getting vaccinated, 44% said they were “afraid of potential side effects” and one in three (31%) said they didn’t trust them. It was. Pharmaceutical company.

There are some questions asked by Professor Vantam from the panel-you can see the full Q & A at the top of this page.

Need to worry about the potential side effects of the Covid vaccine?

Not being vaccinated against Covid-19 because of concerns about potential side effects is a far greater risk than any side effect caused by vaccination, Van-Tam told the panel.

Professor Van-Tam is not only a Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine, Moderna jab that has shown 95% effectiveness so far Vaccinations being developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca showed up to 90% effectiveness.

Still, he said, “the data we’ve seen so far suggest that the side effects are much milder than those of Covid-19 in vulnerable people.”

“What you have to do is of vulnerable people who are stuck in the ICU, stuck in oxygen and bubbles, are seriously ill for a long time and have to say goodbye to their loved ones before going to the hospital. Just watch the TV image.

“That’s what you know, that’s a real side effect of Covid-19.”

On Wednesday, Professor Sir Munir Pilmohamed of the Working Group on Human Medicine (CHM) said the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine was as safe as other vaccines, with side effects usually mild and lasting only a few days. I did.

Do you need to worry that the Covid vaccine is being created faster than other vaccines?

Approximately 23% of those surveyed also say they are “unpleasant” about how quickly potential vaccines are being developed.

Although the process has been sped up, Professor Van-Tam said, “the corners have not been cut for the actual size of the study and how regulators can finally sit and view the data.”

He continued that various studies sent the findings to MHRA “weekly, monthly” so that they could evaluate them in real time, rather than sending “massive paperwork” and “vaccine-related documents” once. I did. The trial has ended.

Professor Vantam explained, “This means there is no backlog of paperwork or research to consider at the end. This is another way to save time without cutting corners.”

He added that a large number of people with respiratory illness, one of the very problems that makes Covid-19 a major issue worldwide, can participate in a large number of people at once.

“The number of cases is known because the coronavirus has just raged around the world and manufacturers are testing it around the world in Brazil, South Africa and the United Kingdom.

“They need to read about effectiveness very quickly.

“That means we have so many illnesses around the world, so it’s partly sad that we reach results very quickly, but from a vaccine development perspective, these trials It’s good to go very fast, just for the case number. “

Will the children be vaccinated?

Currently, the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine is not approved for use under the age of 18, and it is unlikely that either the Modana vaccine or the Oxford vaccine will be approved.

Professor Van-Tam confirmed to ITV News that Pfizer is conducting research on “a few” children, but “I don’t think these vaccines are likely to be approved for children. I added. Risk from coronavirus. “

Can a vaccinated person get an “immunity passport”?

56 years old was also asked “Immunity passport” You can bring it in to prove that you received it Coronavirus vaccine.

On Monday, Nadhim Zahawi, the newly appointed minister responsible for the deployment of the vaccine, said it was not mandatory to receive injections, but pubs and restaurants said coronavirus before customers were allowed admission. I was able to request to know if I had received the jab.

The next day, Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove said there was “no plan” for this to happen.

Professor Van-Tam has never “considered the idea of ​​a vaccine passport” and “it is too early to talk about anything related to coronavirus vaccines, and the real job of his current job is to protect vulnerable people. Is to do. “

However, he did not completely deny that such a “concept” could be introduced. He said it was not “new” as several countries are running similar plans.

He gave examples of Muslims around the world having to pilgrimage to Mecca and be vaccinated against diseases such as yellow fever as a “prerequisite for going to rituals.”

Can clinically vulnerable people be vaccinated against Covid?

Before the use of the Covid vaccine in the UK was approved, Professor Van-Tam said, “Absolutely suitable for shielded people,” “Immune system is not working and is perfectly healthy. The immune system isn’t working either. ” ..

But he warned that he couldn’t say “how effective it is for people with a damaged or non-functional immune system,” but nonetheless, anyone vaccinated by the NHS did it. It was “absolutely important” to get it. ..

Can I start returning to normal as soon as vaccination begins?

Professor Van-Tam also warned that vaccine deployment is not an “immediate solution”, but that we can all “break the bondage and go to the world we enjoyed before.”

Scientists and politicians have previously warned that social distance and hygiene measures need to be maintained until the majority of the population is vaccinated and the number of cases is much smaller.

How long does it take for everyone to get vaccinated?

Professor Van-Tam said he hopes it won’t be long before people at the bottom of the priority list get vaccinated.

After the news of the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine was announced on Wednesday, the government announced: Care home residents and their caregivers will be in the first row of jabs, And the rest of the population over the age of 50 is divided into 5 year brackets and vaccinated from the oldest.

“The NHS is absolutely determined to move at very high speeds and huge volumes,” said Professor Vantam, “a very short problem of weeks or months” among those at the top of the list. He added that he believed that there was nothing else. And they are much lower.

Do vaccines work for people of different ages, genders and ethnic backgrounds?

When asked by members of the panel about higher mortality rates from Covid for ethnic minorities-numbers released in October by the National Bureau of Statistics show that. Blacks in the UK are more than twice as likely to die of coronavirus as whites -Professor Vantam said, “In fact, most of them are related to pure genetic or racial explanations.”

“Experts are looking at it, many of which are related to the age of people with chronic illness and BAME. [black and minority ethnic] The background begins to get chronic illness. It’s like diabetes and tends to be faster than the majority of whites in this country. “

He continued to ensure that three different vaccines have been tested in a wide range of ethnicities, ages and genders around the world and that everyone feels “confident” in being vaccinated.

Does the vaccine stop the infection of the virus?

When asked if the trial showed whether the vaccines could prevent infection, Professor Vantam said this was not yet known, and “millions of people in the UK take these vaccines. It will only be revealed if it is “done.” Not only does it stop the disease, it also stops the infection. “

Earlier Wednesday, Professor Weishenlim, a member of the Joint Committee on Immunization and Immunization, told Sky News: [the Pfizer/BioNTech one] Prevents you from getting sick with Covid. We still don’t know how long Covid will stop sending until it’s widely deployed. “

Do vaccines help create herd immunity?

Professor Van-Tam also told the panel that it would take a considerable amount of time for herd immunity to begin. Most of the population needs to be vaccinated for this to happen.

Does a single dose provide a certain level of protection against Covid?

All three vaccines (Pfizer / BioNTech, Moderna, Oxford University and AstraZeneca) require two vaccines, and Professor Vantam emphasized the importance of those who receive both. “It is important that everyone participating in the program returns. If you finish the course with a second dose, you will probably be fully protected 10-14 days after the second dose.”

When will normality return?

Covid vaccines are now a reality, but as we knew, they don’t mean to come back to life soon.

But before the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine was approved, Professor Vantam was optimistic. “It’s just the beginning that we want to be a journey that takes us to another place by the end of spring.”

Is the truth about Antibacs concerns?

Of those who responded to the ITV News poll, one in five (19%) said they were “reluctant” to get vaccinated, and eight said they would avoid vaccination altogether. 1 (12%) said they would. Hesitate to get vaccinated because of the belief that vaccinations include microchips or other devices.

Professor Vantam said it was “unwise” to dismiss the rumors of a microchip embedded in a jab and even raise it as a question.

Why Oxford is the reason for the celebration when vaccines cannot be compared: Listen to the ITV News Coronavirus Podcast