PUTRAJAYA: Parents have been reminded not to rush their teenage children to the Covid-19 vaccination centre (PPV).
Deputy Health Minister I Datuk Dr Noor Azmi Ghazali, who is also the Covid-19 Immunisation Task Force-Adolescent (CITF-A) chairman, said the vaccination programme for teenagers, which starts tomorrow, would be conducted via several methods, including walk-in and scheduled vaccinations, with 156 selected PPVs involved.
"Please don't rush to bring your children to the PPV. If one is turned down at a PPV, one will only get frustrated and angry. We don't want that.
"We assure you, we have enough (Covid-19) vaccine supplies for teenagers. There is really no need to rush. Please check (the necessary information) first or refer to the respective school where your children are attending," he said in a press conference today.
Dr Noor Azmi earlier said the inoculation drive for teenagers would be carried out via several methods, namely, MySejahtera appointments, walk-ins and scheduled vaccinations applied to different groups.
He said parents were responsible for ensuring their children receive Covid-19 vaccines and they should read up information on the Pfizer vaccine, which would be administered to teenagers in the country.
Dr Noor Azmi said it was important for parents or guardians to understand the vaccine before signing the consent form and handing it to the health staff on the appointment day.
"Apart from taking their children to the PPV on the set dates, parents also play a role in informing the school representatives if their children are unwell or unable to attend the scheduled vaccination.
"A parent or guardian is required to accompany the teenager to the vaccination centre to verify the child's health status on the day of vaccination, and to supervise their condition after receiving the vaccine during the observation period, which is monitored by health staff."
Dr Noor Azmi said parents or guardians who were unable to be present during a teenager's vaccination session were required to fill up a form consenting their representative to accompany the teenager.
To receive the vaccination digital certificate, parents or guardians were encouraged to register their children as dependents in MySejahtera, while teenagers who own mobile phone can register with the app.
"To ensure that private education institutions receive vaccines soon, school principals are required to register the institutions via the VAKSIN-ANAK-KU platform.
"The data in the portal is necessary in planning the vaccination schedule for private institutions."
Dr Noor Azmi said as of Sept 21, a total of 5,964 of schools have registered with the portal.