Dinkes: Take Whatever Vaccine Booster is Made Available to You First

Jakarta Health Agency (Dinkes) Head, Widyastuti, said in a statement that the Jakarta administration prompts all residents who already have booster or third dose tickets to immediately go to health facilities or vaccination centers.

We recommend taking whatever vaccine is made available to you first, whatever it is has passed the clinical trial stage

"Jakarta is massively using the AstraZeneca vaccine as a booster, as it is the type that is currently available. We recommend taking whatever vaccine is made available to you first, whatever it is has passed the clinical trial stage and is beneficial for the immune system," she expressed, at Dinkes Office, Central Jakarta, as quoted by Jakarta PPID's press release, Wednesday (2/9).

Most people who have received tickets for the third dose of vaccine are those who use Sinovac or AstraZeneca at doses 1 and 2. The booster using the AstraZeneca vaccine was effective in preventing symptoms when exposed to Covid-19 by 93%, while the Pfizer vaccine was 90%.

Jakarta Intensifies Booster Shots to Public via JAKI

It was also effective in preventing hospitalization if exposed to Covid-19 by 96%, while the Pfizer vaccine was 87% (Ministerio de Salud, Chile, 2021).

"So, let's vaccinate now in health facilities and vaccination centers spread across various regions. Protect yourself and those around you," she invited.

As for the information, the record for the additional Covid-19 cases in Jakarta occurred on February 6 with a total of 15,825 people confirmed positive. However, vaccination has an important role in increasing immunity and has been shown to reduce symptoms, the risk of hospitalization, and death if exposed to Covid-19

Based on the Dinkes' data, there is a significant difference between the second wave last year and the third wave this year in the number of occupancy of beds in hospitals treating Covid-19 and the increase in the number of deaths.

At the peak of the second wave of Covid-19, until July 12, 2021, the occupancy of the isolation beds reached 92% of the available capacity or as many as 10,623 patients being treated, while the ICU beds reached 95% of the available capacity or as many as 1,390 patients being treated.

The number is much different in the third wave of Covid-19, which until February 6, 2022, isolation beds reached 62% of the available capacity or 3,631 patients being treated, while ICU beds reached 34% of the available capacity or as many as 254 patients. being treated.

Likewise, the number of additional deaths was significantly different at the peak of the second wave of Covid-19 last year compared to the third wave this year. On July 12, 2021, the death toll increased by 67 people.

Meanwhile, on February 6, 2022, the death toll increased by 27 people. Despite the number of occupied beds in hospitals and the increase in the death toll is much lower than the second wave of the Delta variant last year, the public is advised not to underestimate the situation. So, let's prevent Covid-19, always implement health protocols, join vaccinations, and reduce vacation. Register for vaccines via the JAKI application or come to the nearest health facility.