Health staff who are administering the Covid-19 vaccine in long-term care settings across the country have been told it is not appropriate to give it to residents whose duration of life may be shorter than the length of time it will take for the jab to work.
The advice is being issued by HSE chief clinical officer Dr Colm Henry following 23 deaths of a number of very frail elderly patients in Norway after getting the Covid-19 vaccine.
The Norwegian Medicines Agency (NOMA) said there is no certain connection between the deaths and the vaccine but there is a possibility that common adverse reactions that are not unusual could aggravate underlying illness in the elderly.
It said it was not alarmed or worried because they are very rare cases and they occurred in very frail patients with very serious disease.
