So, you’re not getting the vaccination? REALLY?
Photo From the Maine CDC site.
Over the past year and a half, we have separated from each other and frozen in fear of a deadly and very contagious virus, COVID 19. At least, those of us who read the reports and watched the stats and understood what they meant were scared…I think. We watched our tvs and read the news and social media with horror and sadness as the death toll climbed in the US and then in our own State of Maine. My tiny hometown made national news, and they were not happy about that. The “Millinocket Wedding” was covered by all the national news media including newspapers, TV and internet news. My hometown friends reminded me that the wedding was actually not held in Millinocket, it was in East Millinocket, and the reception was at a rural lake resort. They were appalled that this infamous outbreak was credited to their community. Unfortunately, they did suffer because of it and many of their citizens were affected. The Millinocket Regional Hospital started COVID sites and became a COVID care center. Just this morning that hospital was listed as having the highest rate of employee vaccinations. I am so proud of them, for that and for other ways they have worked to put this pandemic behind us.
Some of the things we as a population have done to stop COVID are screening, masks, sanitizing ,separating and distancing, closing public places, limiting public transportation and travel. Finally, we have vaccination. Although I practiced all of the previous preventative steps, vaccination was the one thing that I honestly welcomed with open arms. The ones available are not perfect. No vaccine is. They are also not fully approved by the FDA, but the steps and formalities for that approval will take time. And truthfully, the FDA has approved some drugs (like the new Alzheimers drug that costs $52,000 a dose and isn’t proven to work) that do not work or are very dangerous. Opioids are another example. Much has been made of the side effects of the vaccine. Granted there have been some and rarely, they can be serious. The CDC are reviewing issues with pericarditis currently. But the numbers of serious reactions are extremely low, and not commonplace. They are significant to the folks who suffer them, but the big picture tells us this…The vaccinations work well, are mostly safe and the numbers of new infections, hospitalizations and deaths are plummeting. Well over 90% of those current COVID patients who are hospitalized are the unvaccinated. Also, almost all of those who are currently dying with COVID are unvaccinated. Vaccines are doing their job. People I have known and respected all my life are reluctant…some of them are healthcare professionals. This astounds me honestly. After what we have been through as a State and country over the past 18 months, it is alarming that healthcare workers are not gettting vaccinated, and they are speaking out against the vaccine! What about the greater good!
My brother had COVID. He was very sick, and long phone conversations he finally called 911 and went to the hospital, where he spent 3 days recovering. He was one of the lucky ones. He survived, but he had symptoms for months afterward. And, it wasn’t just him, his sons extended family all became infected, including his pregnant wife. They had a Thanksgiving gathering in the middle of a pandemic. One sick child came and everyone at that gathering got COVID. None of them required hospitalization, but some of them were quite sick. After the vaccine became available, my brother told me that he had “done his own research” and he had decided that he didn’t need the vaccine. Instead of arguing with him , I asked him to get his doctors opinion, knowing that he respected her a great deal. She advised him to get it, and he did. He had no issues with it. His sickness was at least 3 months behind him when he got vaccinated. There is scientific fact that although natural immunity from having COVID is real, it does not protect against the newer strains.
There are countries crying for more vaccine. It has been reported that not one family in India has been spared in their current COVID pandemic. They are struggling to deal with the dead bodies. Hospital conditions are horrendous. They don’t have enough ventilators or medicine. They would make great sacrifices for vaccine, and here in the US, we have a surplus because of vaccine reluctance.
I regard this pandemic as a war…that is the one thing I agree with DJT about. We have the generals (healthcare workers and scientists) to help us get through it. And we also have the arsenal….vaccine. But, we the people are the army. We’ve had tremendous dedicated leadership here in Maine and so our rates are extremely low and falling every day. The numbers are falling because of vaccine. All of the prior measures just maintained us until the vaccine was available ….before now, the rates of infections fluctuated all the time.
None of us can control the people around us and what they do as far as vaccination goes. But, as patients, we can ask for vaccinated healthcare providers. And we can get vaccinated ourselves. We can also help those who are hesitant to vaccinate by telling them about our own experience with the vaccine.
We are moving on and moving forward, but the Delta variant is on our tail. Please get vaccinated!
