After the Ministry of Health released the guidelines for the vaccination of children aged 5 to 11 years against Covid-19, this Wednesday (5), the pediatrician and director of the Brazilian Society of Immunizations (SBIm), Flavia Bravo, commented to CNN about the government’s decision and emphasized the importance of starting to immunize this group “quickly”.
“There is a mixture, a certain discomfort, a situation that we could be celebrating, but given everything that has been happening, this whole mess could have been avoided. The scientific community was already waiting for approval, this prolonged process was unnecessary, this only brought unnecessary confusion”, said the doctor.
The Ministry of Health announced that vaccination of children aged 5 to 11 against Covid-19 should start in January this year with an interval of two months (eight weeks) between the first and second doses.
The folder retreated from the requirement of a medical prescription so that children could be vaccinated; right decision, according to the pediatrician and director of SBIm.
“Those who don’t know our country can say in an interview that a medical consultation is essential, as if it were accessible to all Brazilians, and we know it isn’t. When there is a statement from the parents, this is already an authorization, at least they are not demanding a medical prescription or written authorization from the parents”, commented Flavia Bravo.
The pediatrician also highlighted the importance of vaccinating children as soon as possible, especially after the advance of the Ômicron variant of the coronavirus in Brazil and worldwide.
“It would be great if we could vaccinate this population faster, especially with the Ômicron variant tsunami, everyone is seeing what is happening around the world, and we cannot think that we are protected from that. It was better that this susceptible group was protected sooner”, he said.
Produced by Layane Serrano, from CNN in São Paulo*
Reference: CNN Brasil
