As India sets up what the government considers exhaustive protocols to vaccinate citizens against coronavirus, it is necessary to place in the public domain every single aspect of the programme, and subject it to the widest scrutiny, if only to avoid the criticisms that health authorities in the first country to launch mass vaccinations are now facing.

The United Kingdom’s decision to adopt a mix-and-match vaccination programme ~ one that permits the first shot to be administered using one vaccine and the second with another ~ has drawn widespread criticism. Experts believe that authorities in the UK have been forced to accept this unwieldy compromise because of the shoddy way the vaccination programme was taken up. Now, health officials have said that if a second dose of a vaccine is not available, or if the manufacturer of the first shot is unknown, another vaccine may be used.

This runs counter to guidelines in the United States, where Atlanta’s Centre for Disease Control has laid down that authorised vaccines “are not interchangeable” because the “safety and efficacy of a mixed-product series has not been evaluated.” It has said in emphatic terms, “Both doses of the series should be completed with the same product.”

The impossible position that the United Kingdom confronts, as it grapples with a raging virus that has now mutated to pose fresh challenges, was perhaps inevitable considering the logistical challenge of launching a vaccination drive when supplies were uncertain and, in any event, far outstripped demand. UK health authorities first cleared the Pfizer vaccine and later the product developed by AstraZeneca.

While there are some similarities between the Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines, there are also significant differences between the two, including the quantity of ingredients and different immunological methods. The United Kingdom is also slated to receive the vaccine developed by Moderna in a few months which, on present indications, will only add to the muddle.

Even before UK health authorities opted to accommodate a vaccination protocol that many experts deem scientifically unsustainable, there had been concerns raised about the threats posed to public health by expedited vaccine programmes, leading one infectious disease expert to tell an American newspaper, “We’re kind of in this Wild West.”

Another decision taken by UK authorities with its vaccination programme has raised almost equal consternation. The country has decided to administer the first dose of the vaccine to as many people as it can, which of necessity will mean that administration of the second dose would be delayed, perhaps by up to 12 weeks.

Such delays could impact the vaccine’s ability to boost the protective powers of the first dose, experts warn, suggesting that in some situations could render the exercise counterproductive.

It is these pitfalls India must avoid, for while dry runs and grand plans can make headlines, proper logistical planning is vital to avoid the scary implementation we see in the UK. Just any jab will not do.