Vaccinations in the Time of COVID
“Healing doesn’t mean the damage never existed, it means the damage no longer controls your life.”
- Akshay Dubey
Since the dissention of Covid-19 on U.S soil early this year, we have been working tirelessly to slow and stop the spread of this deadly disease. Discord amongst political parties, different regions of the country, and within different social classes have made accomplishing this task that much harder. Now with the arrival of 2021 comes a new surge, and perhaps one possible chance at hope in the form of a new vaccine. Vaccination itself is a controversial topic, as it is a personal choice that effects public health at large. Minorities historically have a difficult time trusting injections issued by our governments health services, as the Tuskegee experiments were only 50 years ago, and parents are also tough to convince that vaccinations possess more benefits than possibility to cause some kind of harm.
As a teacher, I myself have felt differently at different times. I don’t believe that in educating your children I also sign on to be exposed to a virus they may be carrying because you as a parent have chosen not to vaccinate. I also feel very strongly, however that students should not be subject to suspensions when their immunization record is not up to date as a way to bully parents into submission. No one can argue with the recent resurgence of illnesses such as whooping cough and measles due to more parents opting not to vaccinate. The sad fact is, usually the community most at risk to exposure and death, is usually also the community provided the least information, and has access to less regular healthcare or more than basic insurance coverage. In an effort to provide some education, information, and clarity about the covid vaccine, I spoke with 20 year veteran nurse Rhonda Wesley. She has worked in medical surgical nursing, transplant nursing, school nursing, home care, clinic setting as a nurse manager and is currently a supervisor on a telemetry unit. She stated:
“When we were told back in March we had a Covid + patient in the hospital, I cried for days. My gut told me this would be big and would impact many lives. The floor I work on was transformed into an all covid unit in addition to the rest of the hospital. Our patients were very sick and because of the no visitor policy, we were the last faces many of the patients saw before the passed away. Our staff was exhausted but kept going. Nurses, assistants, and doctors were often afraid to go home to their families, some not returning for weeks testing positive for the virus. I often asked myself what was keeping us going. Then I would get a sign from god that he wasn’t far away. I have been in health care long enough to work through Ebola, SARS, and H1N1. Nothing compares to the widespread destruction of this virus.”
The valiant efforts of our essential and healthcare workers has been nothing short of superhuman. On the 200th Anniversary of Florence Nightingale’s birthdate, the World Health Organization declared 2020 “The Year of the Nurse.” When asked what lead to her own personal decision to receive the covid vaccine, nurse Wesley had this to say:
“I made a conscious, informed decision to vaccinate despite the controversy. I was just like the nay sayers initially, saying I’m not taking that horrible vaccine. I changed my mind once I saw the efficacy of the vaccine used in other countries. I am also privileged to work alongside some really intelligent doctors who definitely gave me “the business” when I told them I did not want to vaccinate. The common misconception of most people is the vaccine will cause you to contract the virus. The vaccine DOES NOT contain a live virus so you CAN NOT catch covid from it. It does require 2 doses to be effective, and I just received my 2nd dose. After the first dose, I did feel a bit under the weather for an hour or so, my arm was sore, I had a mild fever, and a headache. These are all common side effects of most vaccines.”
With this new year comes new policy makers, a new viral strand, new fears as cases continue rising daily, and skeptism surrounding the vaccine that may in fact provide the very relief we need. When asked how she felt the vaccine could help in our fight to slow the viral spread, nurse Wesley stated:
“I do feel a sense of urgency to get most of the community vaccinated because just like polio, varicella, and tetanus, Covid-19 can be a pandemic of the past. Education is key and it is of extreme importance that we pass on the knowledge so others can make informed decisions.”
For more imformation on vaccines and common myth busters please visit, so you can make your own informed decision:
www.publichealth.org/public-awareness/understanding-vaccines/vaccine-myths-debunked/.com