Hamartia Antidote
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Coronavirus: Ireland administers its first doses of Moderna vaccine
Vaccinators at one of three new mass inoculation sites hope to get 11th dose from vials
Vaccinators in Co Laois were hoping to get an eleventh dose out of the Moderna vaccine vials as Ireland administered its first doses of the US vaccine.
Speaking at the pop-up vaccination centre in the Killeshin Hotel in Portlaoise on Saturday Dr Nuala O’Connor, Covid lead with the Irish College of General Practitioners said that they had been given authorisation to try for the extra dose.
“We’re now getting a seventh dose out of some of Pfizer vials, today we’re using Moderna for the first time. They come in a 10 dose vial, but we’ve been authorised to try, if possible, to get an 11th dose. That increases our capacity, we’ve reserve lists.
“No single vaccine dose is going to be missed. We will be pulling people in at short notice.”
The latest figures from last Wednesday show a total of 77,303 Covid-19 vaccines have been administered in the State.
The vaccination of healthcare workers against coronavirus is to be scaled down for at least 10 days in order to allow for greater focus on nursing homes and other care facilities.
The HSE opened three mass vaccination clinics around the country on Saturday, one in Dublin, Galway and Portlaoise, marking the addition of the Moderna vaccine to Ireland’s vaccination programme.
Portlaoise GP Dr Michelle Byrne, who was administering the vaccine at the Killeshin Hotel, said there had been some teething problems earlier in the morning with the IT system, but once that was sorted she said it was taking her six minutes to administer the vaccine.
