KUALA LUMPUR: Vaccinators are now required to show the syringe, filled with the prescribed quantity of the Covid-19 vaccine, prior to its administration to a recipient.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba said the vaccinators are also required to show the empty syringe to recipients after the injection is done.
He said these additional procedures need to be carried out under the standard operating procedures (SOP) for vaccinators at AstraZeneca vaccine delivery centres (PPV) to ensure the quality of vaccine handling for Covid-19 is at an optimum level.
"In addition, close monitoring, especially at the PPV, will be enhanced to ensure that the SOP is fully complied with," he said in a statement today.
Dr Adham said the ministry is seriously looking into alleged incidents of "under-dosing" of the AstraZeneca vaccine at the Kuala Lumpur World Trade Centre (WTCKL), which went viral on social media.
"The ministry and ProtectHealth Corporation Sdn Bhd are conducting further investigations into the matter."
Several individuals posted videos of them getting their shots, with a lower amount of the vaccine, on Twitter.
This caused concern among Malaysians, especially those who had been vaccinated.
Meanwhile, Malaysian Public Health Physicians Association president Datuk Dr Zainal Ariffin Omar said the under-dosing was due to human error.
He said the recipients can ask the vaccinators to show them the syringe before the jab, which also applies for Pfizer-BioNTech recipients.
"You can always check and clarify before the inoculation."
The dosage for Pfizer vaccine is fixed at 0.3ml while AstraZeneca and Sinovac are at 0.5ml each.