The Chairman of the Kwara chapter of Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), Dr Baba Issa, says the two jabs of the COVID-19 Astrazeneca vaccine are about 92 per cent effective against the Delta variant of the virus.
Speaking at a news conference organised ahead of the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the association in Ilorin, he said the Delta variant of the virus is highly contagious and could be more severe SARS-CoV-2 virus strain.
The NMA chairman said, “I wish to tell you that the Astrazeneca vaccine is effective. We should disregard the myths concerning the safety of the vaccine, including the recent myth about the magnetic nature of COVID-19 vaccines after vaccination.”
He said conspiracy theories against the vaccine are “alarming and dangerous tilting of the balance of doctor/health workers to patient ratio in Kwara and Nigeria as a whole.”
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Issa added, “In Nigeria, there has been a dangerous migration of doctors from states to Federal Government hospitals; and from Nigeria to countries in Europe, America, Canada, Australia, Asia and surprisingly to other African countries.
“In Kwara, the number of doctors that have left the services of the state in the last one year is high.
“Many have joined University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (UITH), NGOs and other nearby federal hospitals in spite of efforts of the state to upgrade amenities.”
The association chairman noted that its 2021 AGM themed ‘Journey to Achieving Universal Health Coverage: Challenges, Prospects and Practical Solutions’ will focus on how citizens could access healthcare at affordable cost.
