A hospital in central Tokyo that exclusively treats coronavirus patients is rushing to give third vaccine shots to its staff.

As of Sunday, Ishikawajima Memorial Hospital in Chuo Ward had four COVID-19 in-patients with mild to moderate symptoms. It had one patient at the yearend who had been infected with the Omicron variant.

The hospital had planned to start giving booster shots to its staff in January, after an eight-month interval from the second doses. But it moved forward the booster program to late last month, as staff members wanted to be given their shots earlier amid a surge in infections.

The hospital says its doctors and nurses have already received their jabs. It plans to finish inoculating all the staff this week.

Hospital director Shigeta Yohei said he believes moving up the booster program, even though slightly, will help the hospital that specializes in COVID-19 treatment to fulfil its role, and will allow staff to deal with Omicron with peace of mind.

Shigeta added that Omicron is said to pose a lower risk of serious illness, but a rapid growth in cases could overwhelm medical services. He called on people to take thorough anti-infection measures.