Let’s talk about the COVID-19 vaccine (English Version).
As a fully vaccinated girl, today I interview Malcolm Wynter, a healthcare professional that debunks common beliefs surrounding the COVID-19 vaccines and helps us understand the facts.
But first, a little disclaimer: I am a simple South American, 22 year old girl who wishes to serve her community by spreading factual information. I am not a medical professional nor I ever claimed to be and this is not my personal advice but that of the pertinent institutions/professionals. Now that that’s out of the way, here’s the issue :).
In the midst of the most destructive pandemic humanity has had to deal with in a century, with millions of people unemployed, deceased and sick, after what for a moment felt like the true apocalypse, we finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. In 2020, the world's largest pharmaceutical corporations have achieved something unprecedented: the development of vaccines with a high percentage of immunization against SARS-CoV-2, giving us the opportunity to protect ourselves against the most terrifying virus I ever thought I would see.
In the United States, the most widely distributed vaccines today are those from Moderna and Pfizer. Pharmacies across the country offer free immunizations to whoever needs them, and it turns out that yours truly (me, Laurita) works in one of those establishments. That's right, I'm not just writing spectacular issues for this newsletter; during most days I am a healthcare worker. I'm kind of like Clark Kent, if Clark Kent was a crystal-fanatic feminist and TikToker.
I am struck (and I am sure I am not the only one) by how many people see the vaccine and the campaign of terror that I have seen in some media. Is it a microchip? Will the vaccine kill you? Will it make you sterile? Is it even more than a mere placebo?
I decided then to conduct a short interview with a healthcare professional, because at the end of the day I am not here to discuss my opinion, but to establish facts. Throughout this post you will see not only the professional opinion of my guest, but you will also find extremely useful information and sources that have proven to be much more credible than Facebook or Instagram (*wink, wink *).
Today I am joined by Malcolm Wynter, a pharmacist graduated from Nova Southeastern University in Broward County, Florida, with a Ph.D. in Pharmacy. He has five years of experience as a community pharmacist and at least eight years of experience dealing directly with varied immunizations.
“I absolutely recommend getting the COVID-19 vaccine. It is our method to overcome this pandemic; without the vaccine, I don't know where we would be at this point: we would probably be stuck in this abnormal situation for many, many years, ” he said. "I have seen first-hand how this virus has affected the lives of family and friends, as well as patients and I believe that the best way to avoid this is through the vaccine," he added.
According to the CDC (Center of Disease Control), by June 1st, 2021, more than 124 million doses of Moderna's vaccine against COVID-19 had been administered in the United States, and 54 million people already they would be fully vaccinated with two doses. The vaccine has proven to be effective in preventing complications, hospitalizations, and death from COVID-19 in most cases.
The COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer, meanwhile, has been formally approved by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) for use in people over 12 years of age. Today more than 200 million doses of Pfizer's vaccine have been administered, and the number will continue to grow.
Today, in the United States, 177 million people are already fully vaccinated.
“I don't recommend one manufacturer over another in terms of effectiveness. I would say take whatever is available - whichever you can get, I highly recommend it, ” says Wynter.
The COVID-19 vaccines that are available and recommended in the United States are mRNA vaccines or messenger vaccines. They are what you read: the substance that is administered teaches cells how to create a protein, which triggers an immune response in the body. This response produces antibodies, which prevent infection if the virus enters our system. It's like learning to drive in a simulator, without actually having to go outside, so that the real experience is much safer.
The purpose of mass vaccination is simple: herd immunity. According to the WHO, herd or collective immunity is the indirect protection against an infectious disease that is achieved when a population becomes immune, either through vaccination or acquired immunity. The WHO urges that it be understood that in the case of COVID-19, herd immunity must be obtained through vaccination, not exposure, since exposure leads to too large a number of deaths that can be avoided thanks to vaccines .
Wynter was very clear. “I definitely think that getting vaccinated is the best way to achieve herd immunity, especially because as we have been able to observe, there are different variants of the virus, so a prior infection of COVID-19 is not having the impact that the vaccines would in terms of protection,” he assured. “We want to vaccinate as many people as possible in order to protect those who cannot get it like our children or those who do not have access to the vaccine as easily as some of us,” he added.
However, every day we see more and more campaigns against vaccines. People all over the world say that the vaccine has been developed too quickly and that therefore we do not know the effects that it may have in the medium and long term. Leaving aside Hollywood-worthy conspiracy theories, referring to this concern is important because it is totally valid to distrust such a peculiar and unprecedented process.
"First I would ask this question: why are you afraid to get the vaccine?" Wynter began. “This vaccine has been developed with technology that has been available for years, it is not something that has been manufactured overnight. It went through all the clinical trials just like any other vaccine (flu, tetanus, etc), so I wonder why they don't want to get it. Most people feel indecisive because things they see on social media, so my recommendation is to educate yourself as much as possible. Read about vaccine development, learn about side effects, talk to your healthcare providers and people who have been vaccinated. The vaccine has been available for more than eight months and we don't see anything that should discourage you from getting it. On the contrary, it prevents hospitalizations and deaths even though you can still contract the virus thanks to the immune response."
The true and simple reason why the vaccine was developed, approved and distributed so quickly, as explained by Rachel Lance in this excellent article, is that we all got together to make it happen, as the ravages of the pandemic were, in soft words, absolutely devastating.
First, we benefited from the knowledge we already had about coronaviruses. Then, the normally slow and unhurried process to approve a vaccine was tremendously accelerated, shortening time through emergency FDA approval, and finally a number of volunteers and professionals joined in, willing to put their minds and efforts into achieving the final goal: that this situation ends and that we can live normally again.
Wynter has grappled with these questions and concerns for months. “Your source of information should never be social media. Your opinion should be based on facts, studies and reliable information. I would challenge that misinformation on social media by simply asking for sources, asking for evidence to back up the claims, because anyone can go on social media to say anything about the COVID-19 vaccine, but not many of them can argue with evidence."
We ended the interview by asking, then, where can reliable information regarding COVID-19 be obtained today?
With regard to vaccines and immunizations, Wynter recommends websites such as the CDC and WHO, as they are reputable sources, where studies to observe in these cases are published. They are also, of course, where I got most of the information for this edition of the newsletter.
This virus has destroyed families, destabilized our economies and made us completely change our way of living. We have seen people die alone, unable to say goodbye to loved ones; only the United States, we have lost more than 651,000 lives. This period in history has changed our perspective, and we have to realize the most important thing: we must fight together in order to win. It’s the only option we have.
If you are in the United States and want to get vaccinated, visit this link to find the vaccination center closest to you. The COVID-19 vaccine is 100% free for you, and every dose counts. You can also share this edition of the newsletter with anyone who has questions, so we can create awareness.
We’ll get through this together.
See you later,
Laura.