Bengal doctors write to Mandaviya for COVID booster dose

KOLKATA: A doctors' forum in West Bengal wrote to Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Saturday requesting quick roll out of a booster dose programme for front line warriors fighting COVID-19 expressing apprehension that the efficacy of the two jabs which are being administered now will "not go further over time".

The West Bengal Doctors Forum (WBDF) in its two-page letter to Mandaviya cited studies stating that administration of booster doses is an effective measure to prevent COVID infection by maintaining the vaccine efficacy.

"We are all aware that efficacy of vaccines goes no further over time and due to that numerous healthcare workers may contract the disease in their dutyline. There are studies which say that the administration of booster dose will be an effective measure to prevent COVID infection by maintaining the vaccine efficacy," Rajib Pandey and Punyabrata Gun of the Forum said in the communication.

"At present, the number of active COVID cases in our country is low and under this circumstance on behalf of medical fraternity, we appeal to you and your good office to issue an early advisory to commence the booster dose vaccination programme for COVID-19 for all healthcare workers and frontline warriors as early as possible," the letter read.

Relentless services are being provided by innumerable doctors, nurses and other healthcare personnel as well as by frontline workers like the police, the missive said and pressed for prompt compensation to the kin of the members of the medical fraternity who have died fighting COVID-19 without any delay".

"We do not know how many warriors will lay their lives until an effective prevention and vaccination programme is proactively enforced by the administration. All frontline health workers fought from the front and many of them sacrificed their lives, though their families remain in utter dismay due to the impermissible losses. A prompt compensation for the kin of the deceased members of the medical fraternity without any delay is also the need of the hour," it said.

In West Bengal at least 8,06,30,430 doses have been administered till Friday, state health department statistics said.