When Pfizer’s first vaccine dose arrives in the UK, authorities will tell doctors and nurses not to give priority

Prioritizing people over the age of 80 and nursing home caregivers, public health officials acknowledged that demand could quickly outpace supply in the early months, even for these groups. Chris Hopson, CEO of the NHS provider, said the 800,000 doses the UK expects to receive this month “may be the only batch we receive for some time.” I warned.

The early launch in the UK makes it the first country to face the challenge of using innovative technology and deploying vaccines that require very careful handling.

The United States is not far behind the approval decision, and while the experience here may help the United States’ efforts, the UK universal insurance system allows for a more centralized approach.

The U.S. government plans to ship 6.4 million doses of Pfizer vaccine to the state within 24 hours of anticipating an emergency license from the Food and Drug Administration, Gustav Perna, Chief Operations Officer for Operation Warp Speed. The Army General said this week.

Like Britain, the United States may start slowly in the first few weeks, but Perna told reporters that numbers would grow rapidly. The White House Vaccine Emperor predicted that the United States should be able to distribute enough vaccine to vaccinate 100 million people by the end of February.

On Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Advisory Board voted to recommend prioritizing healthcare professionals and long-term care resident first. This is in line with the priority list of many countries around the world. But the UK shocked National Health Service health care workers Thursday night, revealing that, contrary to long-standing expectations, they were not the first to receive injections.

Frontline nurses and doctors are regularly welcomed as British national heroes. During the early months of the pandemic, citizens filled the streets, slammed pots and pans, blew horns, and expressed gratitude for their weekly courage.

But now, with much of the country, they will be expected to wait.

Mike Adams, UK Director of the Royal College of Nursing, said in the past few weeks that “the message from politicians has focused on’the NHS staff understands’, so some of the explanations from politicians It didn’t help. ” By raising expectations. “

Adams told The Washington Post: “We want members to access for their own safety and prevent further outbreaks in the areas where they work, but understand why they are most vulnerable due to limited vaccine supply. Thank you for being. Priority, but confusion is the least useful part. “

NHS staff and members of the Vaccine Task Force said they would like to prioritize the elderly and nursing home caregivers on behalf of ICU nurses, ventilator specialists and emergency room doctors. This is because the age group and sector have the highest mortality and hospitalizations.

Unfortunately, NHS officials have admitted that they do not yet have a protocol for providing Pfizer injections within nursing homes or approval from drug regulators.

Developed by the German company BioNTech and manufactured by Pfizer, the vaccine is built on a small messenger RNA that encourages the body to produce antibodies that repel spike proteins on the surface of the coronavirus. RNA vaccines require special treatment as they must be stored and shipped in the very cold subantarctic temperatures of minus 75 degrees Celsius.

UK regulator, Granting urgent approval For the Pfizer vaccine, it cannot be moved more than 4 times and the 975 dose tray cannot be split. This means that at this time it is not possible to split the tray and inject it into a typical small nursing home with a small number of patients. ..

“It’s not like taking 6 packs of yogurt out of your home fridge, splitting it on your kitchen worktop, putting it in your bag, taking it home, and storing it in your work fridge,” Hopson says.

Therefore, while the NHS understands how to enter a nursing home, the first jab is infused into one of the 50 hospitals servicing the vaccination hub. Next year, the government plans to open mass vaccination centers in conference centers, sports arenas and schools.

Overall, the UK has ordered 40 million doses of Pfizer vaccine. This is sufficient to vaccinate 20 million people, as each requires two vaccinations every three weeks.

Alok Sharma Business Minister Told Sky News On Friday he wanted the country to receive “millions” of doses from Pfizer this month, but he always said, “Of course, most of this vaccination program will take place in the New Year. “.

The first 800,000 doses promised by Pfizer are not far from covering 3.2 million British people over the age of 80 and at least 300,000 caregivers working in nursing homes.

All of these people are in front of more than 1.4 million NHS workers.

Chaand Nagpaul, chairman of the British Medical Association, a major medical union, said it was important to prioritize those who appear to be most at risk due to limited supply, but the government Criticized the inconsistent message.

“During the first wave, so many health care workers and social workers were incredibly ill at covid and suffered many tragic deaths. Therefore, to those who work at the forefront. Should be given the opportunity to be protected early, “said Nagpol.

“As more vaccines become available, it is important that there is absolute consistency and clarity for both public and medical staff about when and where vaccination can be expected,” he said. Told.

Paul Hunter, a professor of medicine at the University of East Anglia, said deployment would be a “major challenge”, but UK hospitals and laboratories process samples that require low temperatures, such as the use of liquid nitrogen and dry ice. He added that he was well equipped to do so. ..

He said it makes sense to prioritize a nursing home that was “really badly” hit in the first wave if its purpose was to reduce the death toll.

After that, he said, the next to the list could be a healthcare professional. “They not only put themselves at greater risk, but also take care of many in a very vulnerable group of older people.”

This is also important if it is not widely accepted by people over the age of 80.

“If you’re targeting the late 80’s and it’s not accepted as expected, the next best thing is to vaccinate those who are in close contact with them, the healthcare professionals.”