By AARON RECUENCO
A police sergeant assigned at the Manila Police District (MPD) died of COVID-19 a few days after he received the first dose of Sinovac vaccine.
The case of the police sergeant, which was reported to be the 41st COVID-related death in the Philippine National Police (PNP), bolstered the advice of health experts that those who received the vaccine can still be infected by the coronavirus.
A police report said the 48-year old police sergeant assigned to the MPD-District Traffic Enforcement Unit died on April 8 in a hospital in Bulacan where his family rushed him Wednesday night after he complained of difficulty in breathing.
He received the first dose of the vaccine on March 31 from the city government of Manila after he was included in the priority list as he is assigned to the MPD with comorbidity.
Initially, the police sergeant did not experience any side effects but a few days later, he complained of difficulty in breathing, with high fever and cough. When he arrived at the hospital, his oxygen saturation in the body was already at 30 percent.
He died in the hospital despite attempts of medical staff to provide him with all the medication. The police sergeant was subjected to a swab test and it was confirmed that he was positive for the coronavirus.
