THE SA Medical Association (Sama) said it would not support any of its members who spread misinformation about Covid-19 vaccines and called on the Health Professions Council of SA (HPCSA) to discipline medical professionals who breached their ethical duties by proliferating Covid-19 vaccine misinformation. Sister Ndzishe, who works at Luvoyo clinic receives her Covid 19 vaccine at Khayelitsha District hospital. Picture Henk Kruger/African News Agency(ANA)(ANATOPIX)
DURBAN - THE SA Medical Association (Sama) said it would not support any of its members who spread misinformation about Covid-19 vaccines and called on the Health Professions Council of SA (HPCSA) to discipline medical professionals who breached their ethical duties by proliferating Covid-19 vaccine misinformation.
The association’s comments came after a group of doctors, lawyers and business people have accused the government of what it alleged was a lack of transparency on the current Covid-19 national vaccine roll-out programme.
The government began a vaccine roll-out programme on May 17 that has to date vaccinated more than 9.5 million people who registered through its Electronic Vaccination Data System.
Dr Herman Edeling, a neurosurgeon, medico-legal practitioner and mediator, along with other doctors, lawyers and executives, wrote an open letter to President Cyril Ramaphosa, titled “Covid-19 Pandemic – Health and Economic Crises”.
The group requested the Presidency and the Health Department to provide the public with daily updates of the number of people who have been hospitalised, and those who have died after receiving a Covid-19 vaccine.
Speaking to The Mercury, Edeling said the group was also requesting the Presidency to address various other safe and effective means of prevention and treatment of Covid-19, over and above the national vaccine roll-out programme.
Edeling claimed the letter had already received support from more than 2400 additional medical practitioners.
“These are not just our opinions but they are based on evidence. We are asking the president to stop the false narrative of only offering vaccines as the primary treatment for Covid-19.”
In response, Sama, in a statement, declared its unequivocal support of vaccination as an essential in the public health response to the Covid-19 pandemic and endorsed the importance of scientific integrity, transparency and public confidence in Covid-19 vaccines.
Sama, which is a non-statutory, professional association for public and private sector medical practitioners, added that Covid-19 posed a significant medical and public health risk, and noted with grave concern the spread of false information about Covid-19 vaccines by individuals within the medical fraternity.
“Sama does not condone unethical and illegal behaviour by its members and calls on the HPCSA to discipline medical professionals who breach their ethical duties by proliferating Covid-19 vaccine misinformation.
“Medical professionals who propagate Covid-19 vaccination misinformation may discourage people from becoming vaccinated, which could lead to the preventable loss of life. Medical professionals have an ethical duty as articulated in the oaths that they take, to prioritise the health and well-being of their patients; to practise medicine with conscience and dignity, in line with international best practice standards and evidence-based medical practice, and to serve humanity.
“Personal beliefs and opinions must not interfere with sound medical management,” said the statement.
Dr Nicholas Crisp, Department of Health deputy director-general: National
Health Insurance, who is responsible for co-ordinating the country’s Covid-19 vaccine roll-out, said he had seen the open letter.
“This is inaccurate and grossly misleading. We think it is highly irresponsible to make statements that may lead to scaring people off vaccination. There is overwhelming evidence that Covid19 vaccination is safe and effective. It protects against severe infection that may lead to hospitalisation or death,” said Crisp.
“Those countries that have vaccinated significant swathes of their populations are seeing rapidly declining death rates, are opening up their economies and as witnessed during sporting events in Europe this past weekend, returning to some semblance of normalcy. Those countries that are lagging in their vaccine roll-out are less able to respond to the economic hardship that many face and international trade is opening up only for those countries that have vaccinated their populations,” he said.
The SA Health Products Regulatory Authority and the HPCSA had not responded to requests for comment by the time of publication.
THE MERCURY
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