Parents await launch of child COVID vaccinations

AMMAN — Many parents in Jordan are wondering when their children will be able to receive COVID-19 vaccines.

The National Epidemiological Committee announced earlier last month that they had sent a recommendation to the Ministry of Education to begin vaccinations for children aged between 5 and 12. 

Najwa Qubailat, secretary general at the Ministry of Education, told The Jordan Times in a previous interview that the ministry would provide COVID-19 vaccines to students if there was written parental consent, but the vaccines will not be mandatory. 

However, so far, COVID-19 vaccines have not been administered to children aged between 5 and 12, according to Health Ministry officials. 

Amal Qadi, a mother of two, told The Jordan Times that she urges the government to “consider vaccinating children before easing restrictions”. 

Qadi stated that as long as vaccines are safe for children and are available, the ministry should speed up the vaccination campaign. 

“What are they waiting for?”, Qadi stated, noting that online education is a “waste of time” for children. 

“Widespread vaccination for COVID-19 is a critical tool to protect everyone from COVID and its related complications,” said Abdel Rahman Shaher, a respiratory disease specialist. 

Shaher told The Jordan Times that there are approximately one million children between the ages of five and 12 in Jordan, thousands of whom have had COVID.

“COVID-19 can make children very sick and cause children to be hospitalised. In some rare situations, the complications from infection can lead to death,” Shaher stated. 

Shaher added that vaccinating children can help protect family members as well, including siblings who are not eligible for vaccination and others who may be at increased risk of getting critically ill if infected. 

“The benefits of COVID-19 vaccination outweigh the known and potential risks,” Tareq Sarayra, a father of two, told The Jordan Times. 

Sarayra said that parents have so many questions about vaccinating their children. He added that it would be helpful for the Ministry of Health to launch an awareness campaign to inform parents about the pros and cons of vaccines. 

Despite several attempts by The Jordan Times to contact the Ministry of Health, they were not available to comment.