A health worker injects the COVID-19 vaccine into a prospective Hajj pilgrim in Dumai, Riau, on April 20 2021.(ANTARA FOTO/Aswaddy Hamid/hp)
Jakarta (ANTARA) – A health official recommended on Saturday that prospective Hajj pilgrims get vaccinated before departing for the pilgrimage.
“Influenza and pneumonia vaccinations are recommended,” said Liliek Marhaendro Susilo, Head of the Hajj Health Center of the Ministry of Health.
Influenza and pneumonia vaccinations are conducted to prevent transmissions, considering that a large number of people will join the pilgrimage, he added.
Based on the records for 2023, some 1,008 Indonesian pilgrims underwent treatment for pneumonia at the Indonesian Hajj Health Clinic (KKHI). Meanwhile, 240 people were treated at Saudi Arabian hospitals.
“The highest number of cases recorded among pilgrims in 2023 were for pneumonia,” he said.
The Indonesian government will provide the meningococcal meningitis vaccine for free to prospective Hajj pilgrims. The vaccine will be administered to prospective pilgrims during visa processing.
The vaccine is mandatory for those who will visit Saudi Arabia using a Hajj visa. This requirement is part of the efforts to provide protection as well as prevent disease transmissions.
Particularly for prospective pilgrims from Central Java and East Java, the government will provide polio vaccines, considering that polio cases were found in the two provinces.
The departure of Indonesian Hajj pilgrims this year will take place in two phases: May 12–23 and May 21–June 1. Indonesia plans to send 241,000 pilgrims.
Source: AntaraNews
