MADURAI: Sputnik V, the Covid-19 vaccine with the highest efficacy rate among the three vaccines available in India, is largely unpopular in Madurai. An attempt by TNIE finds that the Russian vaccine has failed to reach the masses due to several reasons.
The Deputy Director of Health Services Dr S Senthilkumar said that 10 private hospitals in the district are authorised to administer Covid vaccines. Of them, only two hospitals offer Sputnik V, said sources. While Meenakshi Mission Hospital and Research Centre (MMHRC) launched the vaccine in South Tamil Nadu in the first week of July, Vadamalayan Hospital too began to administer the vaccine about 10 days later, besides Covishield and Covaxin.
Abiding by the policy decision of the Union government, Sputnik V, the world's first Covid-19 vaccine to be registered, is neither procured nor administered by the Tamil Nadu government at any of the government vaccination centres/camps, stated Dr Senthilkumar.
The official spokesperson of Vadamalayan Hospital said that the vaccine is procured directly by the hospital by placing an order with Dr Reddy's laboratory, the Hyderabad-based pharmaceutical company that imports the vaccine from Russia. A batch contains 1,200 vials and the hospital has so far procured only one batch.
Meanwhile, an official at the MMHRC shared that the hospital too had bought only one batch so far and that the order placed for the second batch of vaccine a month ago is yet to be delivered and is expected to arrive in the first week of next month. It was learnt that only 10% of the orders placed by the Hyderabad firm were supplied by Russia, he added. Meanwhile Vadamalayan Hospital is yet to take a call on ordering fresh stock.
"Sole dependence on imports is the main reason for Sputnik's meagre penetration in the Indian vaccine market. Unlike Covishield and Covaxin that are manufactured indigenously and the production of which can be increased or decreased to match the demand from various States, the availability of Sputnik is determined only by the exporter - Russia. This dependence on imports hampers vaccine supply locally," another official at MMHRC shared.
The hospital authorities added that the initial craze for Sputnik V due to its higher efficacy rate of 91.6% was soon overshadowed by widespread availability of Covishield (81.3% efficacy when the two doses are taken more than 12 weeks apart) that is preferred the most, followed by Covaxin (77.8% efficacy against symptomatic Covid-19).
Secondly, storage temperature poses an issue with Sputnik, feel hospitals. The vaccine should be stored and transported in deep freezers (costing atleast Rs 70,000 each) at a temperature between -18°C and -25°C with uninterrupted power supply. "Not many hospitals are willing to invest exclusively for the storage of Sputnik, as it proves to be a costly affair due to higher electricity consumption," told the spokesperson at Vadamalayan Hospital.
Thirdly, the two doses of Sputnik V vaccine come in two different vials. While the first dose has 26 pharmaceutical components, the second dose has five components. Whereas, the same vial can be used to administer both the doses in case of Covishield and Covaxin. At MMHRC, the vials of first and second doses are stored in two separate deep freezers to avoid mix-up despite differential labelling for the first and second dose.
The MMHRC official mentioned, "Due to this, Sputnik V carries higher risks of vaccine wastage and resultant monetary loss because not all who received the first dose at the hospital come back for the second dose. While some (floating population) take the second jab in any other centre, some do not turn up for the second dose probably due to complacency upon receiving one shot. Time and again, we ring up to people reminding them that they are due for the second dose." Both the private hospitals said that there is stagnation of at least 100 vials of the second dose of Sputnik V while the vials of first dose were exhausted in a few days since the launch.
In accordance with the norms of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Sputnik V vaccine that is procured by hospitals at the rate of Rs 995 per dose is administered to the public for Rs 1,145 per dose including the vaccine administration fee of Rs 150. The Russian vaccine that has a shelf life of six months is administered in two doses, with a gap of 22-90 days between the two doses.