Buhari's physician administers coronavirus vaccine with gloves against standard practice

President Buhari and Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo on Saturday, March 6, 2021, received the first jabs of the coronavirus vaccine at the Old Banquet Hall of the State House in Abuja.

The President was injected with the vaccine by his Chief Personal Physician, Dr. Shuaib Rafindadi Sanusi, while the Vice President was injected by Dr. Nicholas Odifre, Personal Physician to the Vice President, The Nations said.

This comes after the country commenced its coronavirus vaccination on Friday, March 5, 2021. The country received more than 3 million doses of the AstraZeneca/Oxford coronavirus vaccine to strengthen its fight against the novel coronavirus.

Dr. Cyprian Nyong, of the National Hospital, Abuja was the first Nigerian to receive the vaccine.

The medical doctor who is reported to be one of the front-line workers in the capital has saved the lives of many Nigerians affected by the virus.

Dr. Nyong is reported to have been in the isolation center in Abuja since the index cases were recorded in March 2020.

He took the jab as the Chairman of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 and Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, flagged off the exercise on behalf of the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.).

President Buhari's jab wasn't telecast live but it was widely covered by the media.

Amongst other things, the coverage was to allay fears from Nigerians regarding the effects of the vaccine.

It was also to demonstrate the confidence the president had in the efficacy of the AstraZeneca vaccine in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

While the move has been lauded by many, the President might just have misled Nigerians as gloves are not recommended to be worn when administering the vaccine.

According to the Washington state department of health, gloves are not recommended to be worn when administering the Covid-19 vaccination, unless the person administering the vaccination has open sores on their hands or is likely to come into contact with a patient’s body fluids.

“Gloves are not recommended for most vaccination administration and are not required for the Covid-19 vaccine unless the person administering the vaccine is likely to come into contact with potentially infectious body fluids or has open lesions on their hands,” it said.

“If used improperly, gloves can increase the likelihood of spreading germs.”
The General Best Practice Guidelines for Immunization set out by The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the same thing:

“Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations do not require gloves to be worn when administering vaccinations unless persons administering vaccinations have open lesions on their hands or are likely to come into contact with a patients body fluids”.