After Lactating Women, Doctors Ask The Center To Include Pregnant Women In The Vaccination Drive As Well
After making strenuous efforts to get myself vaccinated against the coronavirus, I finally got my first dose over the weekend. Ever since the government opened up the vaccination drive to include people between the ages of 18 and 45, I have been desperate to get a jab. Like I am sure most people are looking at how vaccine slots on the Cowin website disappear in the blink of an eye. Although I feel like the people who are more susceptible to contract the coronavirus and for whom the virus will cause more complications should be vaccinated first. Pregnant women, for instance. The government has finally allowed lactating mothers to take the vaccine but nothing has been said about pregnant women and this is making them extremely angsty.
Doctors have stated that because many pregnant women, who contract the coronavirus are facing numerous complications, they are anxious to get jabbed. Why wouldn’t they be? It’s understandable that the government is being cautious but it’s high time the centre listens to doctors and medical experts. In fact, the Federation of Obstetric and Gynaecological Societies of India had said the benefits of vaccinating pregnant women outweigh the risks.
Earlier last month, the FOGSI said, “There is no increase in maternal side effects with vaccine administration in pregnancy as compared to nonpregnant women. Women who have delivered after receiving the vaccine during their pregnancy do not show any increased risk.”
Bengaluru: Keen on vaccine, pregnant women ask doctors for shots https://t.co/xibTEA6iMY
— TOI Cities (@TOICitiesNews) June 1, 2021
Also Read: National Commission for Women Helpline For Pregnant Women Received 648 Calls In Last 20 Days
Not only the FOGSI, but even doctors working at reputable hospitals are also asking the government to include pregnant women in the vaccination drive. According to a TOI report, Dr Shashikala Ksheerasagar, obstetrician and gynaecologist, said that pregnant women are most vulnerable during this pandemic. The doctor said, “If we don’t vaccinate pregnant women when they are most vulnerable during a pandemic, when are we going to do it? The idea is that we don’t want pregnant women to get infected.”
She also said that danger only arises when a pregnant woman is injected with a vaccine that contains a live virus. However, all the vaccines available to us contain either an inactivated virus or a killed one. Hence, there is no threat to their lives or their child’s.
If lactating mothers have been allowed to take the vaccine, shouldn’t women who are pregnant be as well? Especially considering that doctors and medical experts have gone hoarse trying to convey to the government that there aren’t any real dangers in doing so.
