Singapore – The Ministry of Health (MOH) is probing the case of a 103-year-old nursing home resident who was erroneously given the fourth dose of the Covid-19 vaccine and passed away less than a month later.
The ECON Healthcare – Chai Chee Nursing Home resident had already received three doses of the Covid-19 vaccine and was given a fourth shot on Dec 13, 2021, said MOH in a press release on Friday (Feb 4).
The resident was admitted to Changi General Hospital on Dec 16, 2021, for pneumonia and hyponatremia and was later diagnosed to have suffered from a stroke, said MOH.
The woman passed away on Jan 10, 2022. Her death was reported to the Coroner, who ordered an autopsy on the cause of death.
“The autopsy found that the main cause of death was pneumonia, with other contributing factors being cerebral infarction (or stroke) and coronary artery disease, which are natural disease processes common in seniors,” said MOH.
“The Coroner has not determined whether these causes of death were linked to the vaccination.”
MOH noted that it takes a serious view of this incident and is conducting thorough investigations under Regulations 14A(1) and 36(1) of the Private Hospitals and Medical Clinics Regulations.
MOH expects investigations to conclude in February 2022.
Preliminary findings indicate that the vaccine dose was erroneously administered due to “possible irregularities in vaccination procedures and poor communication between the nursing home and the medical service provider handling the vaccination.”
MOH said this was the first case of mistaken identity leading to erroneous vaccination by a mobile vaccination team in over 152,000 doses administered to date.
Regarding the delay in reporting the incident, MOH noted it planned to reveal the incident in December 2021, but the family of the resident requested to withhold details which could have led to the identification of the resident.
“We have since consulted the family further and are releasing the information to provide clarity on the incident,” MOH added.
MOH understands that the ECON Healthcare Group and PanCare Medical Clinic have co-funded the resident’s hospital bill as a goodwill gesture.
The nursing home is also in contact with the affected family for support.
Meanwhile, ECON Healthcare and PanCare Medical Clinic have reviewed their processes to prevent a recurrence.
The Agency for Integrated Care, in charge of vaccinations in nursing homes, has reminded all nursing homes to ensure proper communications with the mobile vaccination teams when vaccination takes place.
MOH has also reminded all mobile vaccination teams to verify and authenticate the individual’s identity before inoculation./TISG
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