Commons Sense

This week saw the first doses of vaccines rolled out across the country.

At this critical moment in the pandemic I wanted to address some misconceptions regarding the vaccine.

Firstly, the vaccine has not been ‘rushed’ to market.

The vaccine has still been subject to the same rigorous standards as other vaccines and medicines.

The speed at which it has become available can largely be explained by the large amount of resources made available to the developers of the vaccine.

Governments across the world have contributed millions to vaccine developments, which has helped speed up the process.

Previous vaccines also could have been developed much more quickly had they had the same amount of money available.

Secondly, we will not be ‘guinea pigs’. The vaccine has been rigorously tested on more than 20,000 par ticipants.

To put that in context most vaccine trials are tested on around 300 – 3,000 participants.

This means that the vaccine is highly safe and has a very low risk of causing unforeseen reactions or consequences in par ticipants.

Thirdly, while it is understandable to be concerned about the long-term risks of the vaccines, this fear is unnecessary for many reasons.

Chief among them is the fact that the risks posed by catching COVID far outweigh those posed by the vaccine.

We still do not know what the long-term affects of the virus are if you survive, and of course if you are old or vulnerable you have a high chance of developing serious complications.

Lastly, by getting a vaccine not only do you protect yourself, but you protect others, who could be more vulnerable, from catching the virus also.

By refusing to take a vaccine you are putting others at risk and potentially hampering our struggle to return to normality.

So in light of all this I would urge you and your loved ones to do the right thing and get a vaccine as soon as you are able.

‘By refusing to take a vaccine you are putting others at risk’