September 2021 - Still COVID!

Dr. Storm, CRNA






Another year of the pandemic is moving along. Sometimes I feel it cannot move quickly enough, and at other times it moves way too fast. When you have dear friends being caught by the deadly COVID virus ending up intubated in the ICU and eventually died from this horrendous disease; time moves way too fast.
I have this happen to me. A very dear friend just passed away from COVID. He had been in the ICU for almost two weeks with a plastic tube in his throat. Struggling to breathe. Not being able to have visitors. His wife was struggling at home. His newborn grandchild out of reach. His aging parents were suffering with him in the ICU. What horror. And why? Just because he did not take the vaccine. 

My dear readers and friends: TAKE THE VACCINE! It saves lives. 

The vaccine was not designed to prevent you from getting COVID but rather prevent you from getting severely sick and die if you got COVID.
95+ percent of people in the hospitals with COVID are unvaccinated. 99 percent of people dying from COVID are unvaccinated. It blows my mind why people insist on not receiving the offer of security from this deadly disease. The vaccine is secure and very well tested by now. 5.98 billion doses have been administered globally, and 40-50 million doses are currently administered each day (Our World Data). All these vaccinations without any significant side effects.  
How many of you can believe you are guinea pigs is beyond my imagination. And, I have a pretty wild and vivid imagination.

Get Vaccinated - Save Lives!

Hospitals are overflowing. Nurses and physicians are getting tired of treating patients that are getting sick for NO REASON. Illness that could have been prevented if people would listen to real science and common sense.
Despite being tired of the unnecessary illnesses, nurses and physicians still keep working. Keep helping these very sick patients. That is what we do. But can we all keep on rolling?
Some of these caregivers are becoming numb to the unvaccinated patients pleas for help (LA Times, The Atlantic). And, I do understand their reason. It is very frustrating to listen to their "arguments" against being vaccinated. 

Booster vaccinations?

The initial two doses of the Pfizer vaccine received full approval from the FDA on August 23, 2021. So not more excuses due to emergency authorization.
As many of you know, booster shots are now available for many of our most vulnerable citizens. As of this writing CDC is still deciding on exactly who should be first in line for the boosters.  FDA's advisory committee met last week and recommended a booster shot of the Pfizer vaccine "for people 65 and older and those at risk of serious disease. Panel members also agreed that health workers and others who run a high risk of being exposed to the virus on the job should get boosters, too". What the group of "high risk" means is yet to be determined, however, the advisory committee members were polled on "the CDC has said it is considering boosters for older people, nursing home residents and front-line health care workers, rather than all adults" (Associated Press).

Primary vaccinations are still the key to control this pandemic!

In closing, it is essential to emphasize that the primary focus should be on getting as many citizens and people worldwide vaccinated with the initial vaccines. Boosters will not stop the pandemic. These people are already vaccinated, and the current vaccination level has not stopped the pandemic. I agree with the statements from Dr. Cody Meissner of Tufts University "I think it's important that the main message we transmit is that we've got to get everyone two doses." Also, Dr. Amanda Dohn from CDC "at this moment it is clear that the unvaccinated are driving transmission in the United States."

Stay safe - Get vaccinated!