The Department of Health (DOH) said on Monday (June 28) that it will investigate the viral video of a health worker who failed to properly administer a vaccine dose in Makati City.
A video that went viral on social media showed the health worker inserting the needle into a person’s arm, but failing to inject the contents of the syringe.
In a statement, the DOH said it is a “clear breach of vaccination protocol.” The department gave assurance that it is on top of the situation following the public’s negative reaction to the event.
“Sinisigurado po namin na ating iimbestigahan ang pangyayaring ito upang mapabuti ang ating national vaccination program,” Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said. “Sa pagdating ng mas maraming bakuna sa bansa, we will continue to improve our speed, scale, and quality of service.”
National Task Force (NTF) Against COVID-19 chief implementer Sec. Carlito Galvez Jr. said the Inter-Agency Task Force on the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) will also probe the situation. He added that the health worker involved might be penalized if it is proven that they failed to observe the proper vaccination protocols.
In relation to this, NTF Against COVID-19 deputy chief implementer Sec. Vince Dizon affirmed that Makati City Mayor Abigail Binay has confirmed the incident occurred in Makati. He said it is only an isolated case.
“Minsan talaga, ‘pag pagod na ang ating health care workers, you know some of these things can happen. But this has already been resolved, and we thank Mayor Abby for her transparency,” he said.
Binay described the incident as “human error.”
“Human error, naitama naman agad. ‘Wag naman ganoon, hindi sinasadya iyon. Ginagamit sa politika. Tao lang yung volunteer nurse, humihingi ng tawad. Nagbigay ng assurance na ito ay hindi na mangyayari ulit,” she explained.
The personnel at the vaccination site quickly addressed the mistake and successfully vaccinated the individual after they showed the video to the vaccination team.
Meanwhile, Duque called on health workers and vaccinators to “exercise more caution” following the video. # Report from Louisa Erispe/NGS- jlo
