With the agreement of the Vietnamese Government, the French Government transferred Covid-19 vaccine to Vietnam to support the vaccination for the French community in Vietnam. The French Consulate General selected FV Hospital to be a vaccination centre for nearly 5,000 French residents living in the south of Vietnam. It is equivalent to nearly 10,000 injections.
Eligible persons are all French nationals who are older than 18 and their spouses (married or have marriage agreement), and to all employees (and their spouses) engaged in French diplomatic work.
The French Consulate in HCMC is responsible for delivering the Covid-19 vaccine to Tan Son Nhat airport with the permission of the Vietnam Ministry of Health. The vaccine will be transported to Vietnam in diplomatic cases. FV Hospital will receive and transport the vaccines to the hospital’s vaccine storage facility. Simultaneously, FV Hospital will arrange the vaccination schedule in the third week of July.
The vaccine transferred to Vietnam for this vaccination campaign is mRNA, produced by Moderna. The Pharmacy Department of FV Hospital is certified and qualified to store and preserve Covid vaccines. FV Hospital can hold 800,000 doses of Astra-Zeneca vaccine with a temperature requirement from 2 oC – 8 oC; 200,000 doses of Moderna with a temperature requirement from -20oC to -400C; and ultra-cold freezers to store and preserve up to 600,000 doses of Pfizer vaccine with a temperature requirement from minus -90 oC to minus 60 oC.
The vaccination service will be provided by FV Hospital during office hours, from 8:00 – 17:00 (Monday to Friday) and 8:00 – 12:00 (Saturday). It is estimated that FV Hospital will vaccinate about 500 people per day. Accordingly, the first dose will be completed within 10 days. The second dose will be administered 4 weeks after.
Previously, following the call of the HCMC Health Department, FV Hospital deployed different teams to vaccinate more than 6,800 people at five locations in HCMC within five days. The teams received many compliments and gratitude from the HCMC Health Department, the HCMC Centre for Disease Control (HCDC), and the organisations that received vaccinations.
Before the vaccination campaign, FV has actively and methodically trained their doctors and nurses to ensure a strong foundation in infection prevention procedures for infectious diseases. In addition, they are provided with full knowledge about vaccination programmes, in general, and the Covid-19 vaccination process, in particular. To ensure their safety and convenience when working in hazardous conditions The vaccination team is equipped with protective equipment that meet international standards (including N-95 masks, anti-droplet goggles/face shield and antibacterial gloves) to.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic appeared in Vietnam, FV Hospital has always maintained its mission to support the Government and the people in the pandemic prevention and control. In April 2020, FV was the first private hospital in Vietnam licensed by the Ministry of Health to perform Covid-19 testing. With its high capacity laboratory facilities, bio-security, expert staff and equipment; supported by screening, isolation and testing procedures, FV has been one of the pro-active frontline hospital for Vietnam to fight against COVID-19
