THE first day of H1N1 vaccination at the 18 polyclinics islandwide went without a hitch.

Although some people turned up as early as 8.30am on Friday, there was no rush and queues thinned out quickly, with about 20 to 30 people waiting for their turns at any one time.

The early planning paid off, going by checks by The Straits Times at the Woodlands and Toa Payoh polyclinics on Friday.

Patients were pre-registered from Wednesday and polyclinic staff scheduled back-to-back appointments to keep the lines moving.

One of the first few to have his jab at Woodlands Polyclinic on Friday morning was sales executive Tan Wah Kian, 39, who turned up at about 9am with his wife and mother-in-law. Mr Tan, who plans to leave for a holiday in Vietnam with his wife at the end of this month, was told to turn up on Friday.

'I was worried that there would be a lot of people and it would take too long as I am leaving for Kuala Lumpur in the afternoon,' he said. But when it took just minutes, Mr Tan said he was 'pleasantly surprised' at how well organised the polyclinic was. His family was out of the polyclinic well before 10am.

Read the full story in Saturday's edition of The Straits Times

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