A HOSPITAL trust has reassured the Muslim community regarding getting the vaccine during Ramadan.

North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust is reassuring the local Muslim community that receiving a Covid-19 vaccination during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan does not contravene the requirement to fast.

Ramadan begins on Monday, April 12 or Tuesday, April 13 depending on moon sightings, and will see observant Muslims not eat or drink during daylight hours.

There is concern that some people may believe receiving a vaccine during Ramadan may inadvertently break the fast.

Dr Ijaz Anwar, a consultant with North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Trust and practising Muslim, said: “I would urge everyone to get their Covid-19 jab, even if it’s during Ramadan. It will not affect your fast. You can even check this with your Imam at your local mosque.”

The Trust has recorded a series of short videos featuring the multi-lingual Dr Anwar appealing for fasting Muslims to accept their vaccination appointments during Ramadan. The videos, which will be shared on the Trust’s social media feeds throughout April, have been recorded in English, Urdu and Punjabi.

The British Medical Journal offers the following advice: “People from some ethnic minority backgrounds, such as black, Bangladeshi and Pakistani, may be more hesitant to receive a Covid vaccination because they don’t want to compromise their fast. It is important for these groups to know that having vaccines intramuscularly during fasting time - dawn to dusk - does not nullify one’s fast and vaccination should not be delayed.”

Trust staff who encounter vaccine hesitancy from Muslim patients will sensitively advise that, as the British Medical Journal suggests, injections do not invalidate the fast and are not in contradiction with the teachings of Islam.