Gov’t recruits 1,600 participants for real-world study on COVID-19 vaccines

A seafarer is inoculated with the Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine during a special vaccination drive organized by the Maritime Industry Authority in Olongapo City. (Photo courtesy of Olongapo City Information Center)

MANILA, Philippines — The government has already recruited more than 1,600 participants for a study that will look into the real-world effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines on Filipinos, the Department of Health (DOH) said Friday.

The P100-million study will look at the effects of the vaccines in terms of ethnicity as well as the period of its efficacy, according to the Department of Science and Technology (DOST).

“Ongoing recruitment na po sila ng participants. As of July 30, meron na tayong 1,660 participants na na-recruit sa University of the Philippines-Philippine General Hospital (UP-PGH) site,” Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire told an online media briefing.

(They are currently recruiting participants. As of July 30, we have recruited 1,660 participants from the UP-PGH.)

“Twenty-seven samples from COVID-19 infected subjects among fully vaccinated PGH personnel were successfully sent to PGC for whole genome sequencing as part of this study for the real-world study of the different vaccines that we have,” she added.

In May, DOST Undersecretary for Research and Development Rowena Cristina Guevara said the study will take a year and will involve all the COVID-19 vaccines that are part of the government’s inoculation program.

The country has so far fully vaccinated 10 million Filipinos, still a far cry from its target of 70 million inoculated individuals to reach herd immunity. Some 12 million people have been partially vaccinated or have received one dose of a two-dose vaccine.

EDV