January 31, 2021
Existing vaccines work against the virus variants circulating in the community, say experts.
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SINGAPORE - New variants of the virus that causes Covid-19 have recently caused some concern that they may evade the immune response induced by existing vaccines, but there is no evidence yet of this occurring, said experts here, urging people not to hesitate over getting vaccinated. Existing vaccines work against the virus variants circulating in the community, so people should continue to step up to receive the vaccine, said Professor Benjamin Seet, deputy group chief executive for education and research at the National Healthcare Group and a member of the expert committee on Covid-19 vaccination.
11:25 mins
Synopsis: This is a fortnightly podcast series on Wednesdays by The Straits Times, and this episode is on the safety and common concerns in Singapore over the side effects of Covid-19 vaccines.
Global surveys have shown that a key concern for those hesitant about taking Covid-19 vaccines lies with the side effects that they may experience.
In this episode, ST senior health correspondent Joyce Teo speaks to Associate Professor Lim Poh Lian on the side effects that one may get from the vaccine and why you should not worry about them.
She is the head of the Traveller’s Health and Vaccination Clinic at Tan Tock Seng Hospital, the director of the high-level isolation unit at the National Centre for Infectious Diseases and a member of the expert committee on Covid-19 vaccination, which makes recommendations to the Government on Singapore s vaccination strategy.
Singapore reports 1 new COVID-19 community case, first in more than 2 weeks Toggle share menu
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Singapore reports 1 new COVID-19 community case, first in more than 2 weeks
Office workers wearing face masks are seen near the financial business district in Singapore on Nov 23, 2020. (Photo: AFP/Roslan Rahman)
21 Dec 2020 05:13PM (Updated:
22 Dec 2020 12:28AM) Share this content
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SINGAPORE: A community case was discovered among the new COVID-19 infections reported in Singapore on Monday (Dec 21), the Ministry of Health (MOH) said.
This is the first community case reported in Singapore since Dec 5.
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The case, a 39-year-old Singaporean woman, was asymptomatic.
She was detected when she was tested for COVID-19 before a scheduled cruise trip. The next day, she was taken to the National Centre for Infectious Diseases, where her test returned positive for COVID-19 infection, said MOH.
Don t focus on herd immunity, vaccination should be comprehensive: COVID-19 panel expert Toggle share menu
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Don t focus on herd immunity, vaccination should be comprehensive: COVID-19 panel expert
Associate Professor Lim Poh Lian, an infectious diseases outbreak expert, dressed in personal protective equipment. (Photo courtesy of A/Prof Lim)
28 Dec 2020 10:25AM) Share this content
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SINGAPORE: Rather than aim for a certain percentage of the population to be inoculated to achieve COVID-19 herd immunity, Singapore should vaccinate as many people as possible.
In an interview with CNA, Associate Professor Lim Poh Lian, who is on the Expert Committee for COVID-19 Vaccination, said that it s a mistake to focus on percentages when it comes to COVID-19 vaccination.
A Covid-19 vaccination is not risk-free, but the risk is small, and a person in fact puts himself, his loved ones and society at higher risk by not getting a jab, experts said yesterday at a webinar on the A-Z of Covid-19 vaccines, part of the Straits Times Reset series.
“It’s not a matter of saying, if I do nothing, we’re okay. The weighing is really not between the vaccine and nothing, but the vaccine and the disease,” said Associate Professor Lim Poh Lian, director of the high-level isolation unit at the National Centre for Infectious Diseases and a member of the Ministry of Health’s Covid-19 Vaccine Expert Committee.