Do You Need a Pfizer Booster Shot? Here’s How to Get It in Dubai

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Updated 8 December 2021

According to the Dubai Health Authority, residents and citizens in Dubai can now obtain Pfizer-BioNTech booster injections. The Pfizer-BioNTech booster shot is said to increase the immune response in trial participants who finished their primary series 6 months earlier.

Keep reading to know more about the Pfizer booster shot in the Dubai, how it works, where to get it and who’s eligible.

The Pfizer booster shot program in Dubai

Who can get the Pfizer booster shot?

The Dubai Health Authority (DHA) has started administering a third dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid vaccine to residents over 18 years who are fully vaccinated. Individuals can take their booster shot 6 months after the second dose of Pfizer, Sinopharm or Sputnik vaccines.

Those aged 60 and above, patients in long-term care facilities aged 18 and up, and those aged 50-59 with underlying medical conditions are advised to take a booster shot at the earliest.

Where and how can I get the Pfizer booster shot?

Pfizer-BioNTech vaccination boosters are available at seven Dubai Health Authority facilities. Appointments may be made via the DHA smartphone app or by calling the contact center at 800 342. There is also an Apple and Android app available.

All you have to do now is schedule your appointment once you’ve enrolled. The following clinics provide the vaccine:

• Al Barsha Health Center
• Al Garhoud Medical Fitness Center
• Al Mizhar Health Center
• Covid 19 Vaccination Center Barsha Hall
• Dubai Hospital
• Hatta Hospital
• Latifa Hospital
• Nadd Al Hamar Clinic
• One Central Covid19 Vaccination
• AL Garhoud Hospital
• Aster Healthcare
• Al Zahra Hospital
• Emirate Hospital
• International Modern Hospital

Patients should be assessed by their doctors before taking the third dose.

How much does the booster cost?

Booster shots are provided free of charge.

Is there any document required to get the booster shot?

Residents whose visas are issued in Dubai but have received treatment for their conditions outside the city will have to obtain an attested medical report approved by their physician in order to receive the third dose.

Are boosters effective against the Omicron variant?

In view of the recent spike in global COVID-19 infections due to the Omicron variant, the Ministry of Health and Prevention has urged citizens and residents of UAE to fully vaccinate themselves and take a booster shot to maintain immunity. Individuals above 18 can take a booster shot after 6 months of their second vaccine dose. Booster shots for the Pfizer-BioNTech, Sputnik and Sinopharm vaccines can be booked via the Ministry of Health and Prevention or Dubai Health Authority.

Why should I get the booster shot?

The booster shot is required to strengthen the immunity amongst the vulnerable including immune compromised patients against the different strains of the coronavirus, especially due to spread and emergence of the new mutant strains.

Dr Sunil Vyas, specialist pulmonologist at Aster Hospital in Dubai said “The covid vaccine booster shot has been advised by the UAE as well as other countries based on scientific research and the mutant strains being detected. The reason has been that the two doses of the Covid vaccine might not be as effective to prevent the mutant strain”.

The National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority (NCEMA) also strongly suggests all eligible citizens to get their booster shots.

Are there any side effects to the booster shot?

Eighty-eight percent of survey participants stated they felt “similar or better” in the days after the third injection than they did after the second shot.

Thirty-one per cent reported some side effects, the most common being soreness at the injection site. About 0.4 per cent said they suffered difficulty breathing, and 1 per cent said they sought medical treatment owing to one or more side effects.

Participants in the booster study had 3.3 times greater antibody levels one month after receiving the booster than one month after receiving their second dose.

If I don’t get a booster shot, am I still considered “completely vaccinated?”

Yes. Two weeks following their second dosage in a two-shot series, such as the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, everyone is still deemed completely immunised.