COVID-19 – Indonesian president receives first shot of Sinovac vaccine

Jakarta (Indonesia Window) – President Joko Widodo (locally known as Jokowi) received the first dose of Chinese COVID-19 vaccine Sinovac at the Merdeka Palace here on Wednesday morning, marking the start of the national vaccination program against the coronavirus.

Before being injected with the vaccine, the head of state went through four stages.

The first is about data registration and verification, and the second is anamnesis as a health worker asked about the president’s data, including identity, medical history, and family medical history, as well as simple physical examinations.

In the third stage, the health worker checked Jokowi’s blood pressure and temperature. The head of state’s blood pressure shows 130/60 mmHg with a body temperature of 36.3 centigrade.

“The blood pressure of Mr. President is 130/60, which means he is healthy. If the blood pressure is above 140, no (vaccine injection) is given,” the health worker said.

In addition, Jokowi was also asked about several questions to confirm that he was never infected by COVID-19; had no cough, fever, and flu for the last seven days; as well as a history of heart disease or other comorbidities.

“Here I write the president is feasible for vaccination,” the health worker confirmed.

After all those stages were passed, the president received an injection of the COVID-19 vaccine from Prof. dr. Abdul Muthalib who is also a presidential doctor.

Jokowi had to wait 30 minutes to anticipate if there is Adverse Event Following Immunization (AEFI) conditions.

As a vaccine recipient, the president was also given a vaccination card and a marker as part of COVID-19 vaccination campaign.

Reporting by Indonesia Window