A LOCAL pharmacist has slammed those responsible for distributing anti-vaxx leaflets to homes in West Belfast.
The leaflets, which were distributed in the Turf Lodge area, contains disinformation aimed at discouraging people from taking lifesaving Covid-19 vaccines. Those responsible insensitively liken the vaccine rollout to crimes committed by the Nazis.
The reactionary literature contains a number of purported "facts" that have no basis in science.
Beechmount pharmacist, Dr Terry Maguire, said the spread of anti-vaxx literature could have fatal consequences, branding the authors of the leaflet as "extremists".
"They've got very extreme views which are completely inconsistent with the science," he said.
"No amount of discussion will persuade them otherwise of their very incorrect view and, indeed, a very dangerous and very lethal view because it is going to result in death."
While criticising the group behind the leaflet, Dr Maguire said it was important to "distinguish between" them and others who are simply "vaccine hesitant".
"People who have genuine concerns about the vaccine need those concerns addressed," he stated.
"If anything the wider messaging hasn't been sufficiently robust.
"But I think we need to distinguish between the two groups. The group who distributed the material are a group who are not going to be convinced. What we need to do is to try to counter the material."
He said all four Covid-19 vaccines on the market had been "rigorously and scientifically assessed in terms of safety, efficacy and quality".
"There has been the same amount of investigations and research done that there would be into any new medicine that hits the market," he insisted.
"I've been in this business for 40 years and I have never seen a medicine which is as safe or as effective as the Covid-19 vaccine, and I'm saying that because I have looked at the data."
He added: "The Moderna and the Pfizer vaccine give you 95-96 per cent protection both against serious illness and hospitalisation, and then its 99 per cent effective against death."
Dr Maguire said the creation of the vaccine was a "stunning achievement", describing the anti-vaxx leaflets as "malicious".
"There is absolutely no validity in what they're saying, but they're able to use social media to spread their message, and of course bad news travels much more effectively than good news," he said.
