An 8-year-old boy was accidentally given a COVID-19 vaccine dose in Texas, thanks to “human error,” according to a report.
The child was recently vaccinated at a Dallas County drive-on vaccination center operated by first responders in Grand Prairie after the boy’s father registered him online through a county website and made an appointment, NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth reported.
The three COVID-19 vaccines currently available in the US are for use only in individuals 18 years and older or 16 years and older, depending on the maker.
Pediatrician Marcial Oquendo told the news agency that the child’s father – who had not been identified – believed it was okay to have his son vaccinated as he was able to register and receive a QR code.
“He was under the impression that” I passed on his information and he got an appointment, “said Oquendo.” And when he got an appointment, he said, ‘we all have an appointment, so let’s go.’ ”
The father only realized that a mistake had been made after talking to Oquendo.
“We don’t have the data, especially under the age of 12, to say whether it works, whether it is safe, how much to use, which child can have it and which children cannot,” Oquendo said. “It must take place in a controlled setting of a clinical trial in which we follow every possible angle to be able to say whether it is safe and effective to use in children in this age group.”
Grand Prairie Fire Chief Robert Fite confirmed to NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth that the boy was one of approximately 3,800 people vaccinated at the site that day.
Fite said the department plans to track down the paramedic who administered the injection and get more information about how the accident occurred.
“They’re in the car, there’s a code, the paramedic did what that paramedic did for thousands of others that day and gave the vaccination, but didn’t realize it was a child under 18,” Fite said, according to NBC 5 Dallas. -Fort Worth.
Fite explained that if a person receives a QR code to get the vaccine, “part of our assumption is that they understand who should and who shouldn’t be registered”,
Fite said the vaccination site operates under the authority of Dallas County, and he is also seeking answers from county officials.
“We had a number of questions about how a child under 18 could even be registered,” he said. “If there was a failing system, we didn’t have to worry because you couldn’t register.”
Meanwhile, Oquendo said he has notified the Pediatric Society and Dallas County Medical Society of the matter, the news site said.
“We’re still trying to figure out what to do next,” he said. “We’re trying to figure out who needs to know what.”
Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins told the news agency that the boy could be vaccinated against the coronavirus through “ human error. ”
“He has been put on the suspended list who is ineligible. There was human error and that list was moved to get the people under 50 on the eligible list. They failed to scrub people under 18, ”said Jenkins.
Jenkins added, “We’ve had our IT department work with the outside company to make sure it doesn’t happen again, to see if it can be fully automated.”
“We’ve gotten more training for our medics, so they know if they see someone who doesn’t seem old enough for that vaccine, they understand we’re not giving a vaccine to anyone under the age of 16, or anyone under the age of 18. years if it’s Johnson & Johnson or Moderna, ”said Jenkins.
Both Pfizer and Moderna have started testing their COVID-19 vaccines in younger children.
Pfizer said late last month that its vaccine is 100 percent effective in children ages 12 to 15.