Russian President Vladimir Putin has put forward a plan to test an experimental intranasal vaccine during emergencies at the same time as other vaccines so that health workers can quickly administer a one-size-fits-all response.
While Russia is no stranger to dealing with terrible emergencies like the 2014 outbreak of Ebola in the country’s Eastern region, its method of sending teams into communities to deliver the vaccine was disrupted by the unrest, sending some communities into panic buying for the first time in memory.
For the past year, Putin’s administration has been trying to assess the necessity of this new method for delivering drugs.
On Sunday, Putin, in a video message to volunteers who will participate in a trial run of the new method, said they need to develop a bigger inventory of simple vaccines to prevent such mass panic buying from happening again.
“We are more than ever dependent on public mobilization. During emergencies, our public takes part in such mobilization efforts, and you play a vital role,” he said.
In a reference to emergency volunteers and those on the ground who do not have regular health insurance, Putin added, “There are also many elderly people who have no access to health insurance.”
The trial to determine the efficacy of the vaccine will be carried out during the World Cup in Russia, the test points will be Moscow, Rostov-on-Don, Chelyabinsk, Samara, Sochi and St. Petersburg.
“I count on you to treat patients, do medical tasks, and fight for the public’s health. In these circumstances I would not say that it is not an exact and correct proposal to, as I have suggested, to develop a wholesale requirement for simple formulations of vaccines in our country.”
Lakhdar Brahimi, UN Special Envoy for Syria, was among the ambassadors and world leaders who attended a summit organized by Putin on combating disease outbreaks at the presidential residence in Sochi, adding, “we can’t underestimate the importance of a proper preparedness and a quick reaction in a crisis situation.”
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