State accepts 700,000 doses of flu vaccine

By Elizabeth Mwai

The Government has accepted a donation of 700,000 doses of H1N1 vaccine that are about to expire.

Public Health Minister and Sanitation Minister Beth Mugo on Tuesday said they planned to use the vaccine within the two months before its expiry in June.

"We will use the vaccine so long as they will not be expired," said Mrs Mugo.

In an interview with The Standard Mugo said the vaccine had not arrived.

The Fluvirin (H1N1) vaccine is set to arrive towards the end of this month.

The Certificate of Analysis submitted to the Pharmacy and Poisons Board (PPB) Committee shows a short shelf life with the product having been manufactured in January and the expiry being in June.

At the same time, the minister refuted claims that the vaccine had not been used in Africa, citing South Africa as an example where trials had been done.

Mugo said the World Health Organisation had also confirmed that the vaccine was safe for use.

Clinical trials

According to a document obtained by The Standard, PPB committee has cautioned they were not aware of any information on clinical trials done in Africa on the H1N1 vaccine manufactured by Norvatis.

"Because little is known of this vaccine in Africa, there is need to introduce it in Kenya on pilot basis that will allow close monitoring of the adverse effects in sentinel sites," advised the PPB committee.

The board said there was need to review the H1N1 vaccine safety before its use on large scale.

"Who will shoulder the responsibility in case of a tragedy since its not registered in Kenya and the Norvatis Company has not requested for registration," said the statement from PPB.

However, the Director of Medical Services Francis Kimani, when contacted, said the vaccine would be used before it expires.

Data from the 26 surveillance sites countrywide have shown a reduction in the number of swine flu cases.