KUALA LUMPUR: Those scheduled to receive their voluntary AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine have been advised not to show up hours early for their appointments to avoid any confusion and crowding at the Vaccination Centre (PPV).
ProtechHealth Corporation Sdn Bhd chief executive officer Dr Anas Alam Faizli said vaccine recipients could be present at the centres about 15 minutes before their appointments.
Each recipient, he said, will be informed of the vaccination time and station scheduled for them to receive the vaccine through the Mysejahtera app.
"If they show up early, they will definitely end up waiting because only those who are scheduled to receive the injections within the stipulated time period are allowed to enter or queue.
"Therefore, it is good enough for them to be here 15 minutes early. I also recommend that they use public transport to avoid any problems in the parking lot.
"Those who are in the Patients Under Investigation (PUI) or in close contacts category should not attend as they could be at risk of infecting others. Instead, they can opt to reschedule their appointment date and time," he told BH when met at the World Trade Centre (WTC) PPV here.
Dr Anas explained that the capacity of vaccine recipients at the WTCKL PPV was increased to 8,100 doses starting today with the setting up of three jab stations.
This, he said, made the centre capable of carrying out a large scale vaccination exercise in the country.
"Since opening on May 5, WTCKL had only two stations with a total delivery of 2,400 doses per day but starting today, we can provide 8,100 doses from 9am to 9pm.
"The capacity at Universiti Malaya and Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia PPVs has also been increased from 900 to 1,300 doses daily while at the Ideal Convention Center Shah Alam, it will be increased to 3,000 doses a day."
Dr Anas had earlier said a total of 500 health workers, non-health workers and volunteers were also ready to facilitate the vaccination exercise at WTCKL, and urged those with appointments to be punctual.
Meanwhile, checks at the WTC PPV found that the vaccination process was conducted smoothly despite some confusion at the main entrance as many vaccine recipients turned up early.
The situation resulted in many of them not being able to enter as the queues were only open to vaccine recipients during the designated period.
Social media planner Mohd Khairul Nizam Arifin, 35, said vaccine recipients should not come for their appointment too early as the vaccination process carried out at PPV went smoothly and they need not worry.
"I myself came earlier because I was worried that there would be congestion but when I arrived, everything went on smoothly and it took only about 30 minutes for all matters to be completed."
Luhmade Dina Kusumadewi, 39, an Indonesian, who is an engineer for an international company here also did not have any problems at the vaccination centre.
"I admit it was a little confusing at the beginning but it was all because my husband and I came too early. But when the time came everything went well without any problems."
Luhmade said she was happy to be a recipient of the AstraZeneca vaccine and thanked the Malaysian government for giving the opportunity to all parties.
Meanwhile, retiree Chow Yuen Keng, 62, said he had no worries about receiving AstraZeneca jab.
"Today I came with my wife and three children to receive the vaccine and indeed it was a long awaited day for us to fulfil our responsibilities as Malaysians," he said.
On May 2, the government opened Opt-in bookings for the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine for eligible individuals as well as those over the age of 18. The vaccination exercise for voluntary applicants began on May 5.
ProtectHealth, a wholly-owned non-profit subsidiary of ProtectHealth Malaysia established under the Health Ministry, has been appointed as the executor for the participation of private medical practitioners in the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme.