Healthcare Professional — Vaccinated or Out

The segment of our society that is not taking vaccines is mainly American countryside They tend to get together in large box stores such as churches and Wal-Mart. This is the same population that is unaware of the risks posed by this virus, including reported long-term sequelae. At 10% Up to 30% Even mildly infected people. This segment of the population is also a disadvantageous mask, questioning their effectiveness. All of this makes a large area of ​​America a Petri dish for the spread and devastation of the virus.

And now we are hit by the first wave of variants brought by the UK or B.1.1.7. mutation.This variant is up to 70% More contagious About 64% More deadly.. Although data on reinfection are scarce, a recent Israeli study found that a single dose of the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine increased the risk of infection by a factor of 26. British variant.. (A double dose of Pfizer / BioNTech is up to 97% effective in preventing “symptomatological COVID-19 cases, hospitalization, severe and severe hospitalization, and death.” B.1.1.7.variant..

British stocks are rapidly becoming the dominant stock in the United States. It is more contagious and deadly than the wild-type virus and requires a full dose of the double-dose vaccine to provide substantial protection from infection. In other words, the vaccine is working, but the virus is adapting and making twice the effort to maintain the same effect.

Unfortunately, there are other looming variants. March 17 Infection Control Today® Coronavirus outbreaks reported in highly vaccinated nursing homes Eastern Kentucky.. On April 21, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Kentucky Department of Public Health released a report explaining what I believe. Same occurrence (The report is confidential, but let’s hope this hasn’t happened twice in eastern Kentucky.) The predator was identified as a SARS-CoV-2 mutant with the E484K mutation. The same antigenic escape mutations found in South African, Brazilian, and New York variants.

The CDC reported that the nursing home has 83 residents and 116 health care workers (HCPs). “During the outbreak, 46 COVID-19 cases were identified, including 26 residents (18 fully vaccinated) and 20 HCPs (4 vaccinated). . “

Clearly, the vaccine was not completely preventative, but unvaccinated residents and health care workers were three to four times more likely to get the infection. Innate immunity was also not completely defensive, and four experienced the possibility of reinfection with symptomatological COVID-19.

Vaccine efficacy in infection prevention was estimated at 66% for residents and 79% for health care workers. Vaccine efficacy in the prevention of symptomatological COVID-19 was 87% in both groups. Viral infections (incidence) were three times higher in unvaccinated residents and four times higher in unvaccinated HCPs. And the vaccine was 94% effective in preventing resident hospitalization (HCP was not hospitalized). Three residents died and one of them was vaccinated.

The biggest concern was that the proband was an unvaccinated symptomatologist. Many in our society feel that it is their right not to be vaccinated and even to not wear a mask. But I feel simply blamed for exercising this right and endangering the most vulnerable parts of our society that have given their lives to health care workers. If you work in a medical facility, you must be vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2. If you choose not to be vaccinated, you should choose not to work in the medical setting.

Therefore, even with the E484K variant, vaccination appears to provide substantial protection against severe COVID-19. However, in most cases, severe illness is defined as death or hospitalization. This is a very low standard set for the health of the community. I personally know that I have too many friends with “mild” COVID and suffering from heart disease such as chronic dyspnea and arrhythmias.

The take-out message is very simple and you will be vaccinated. Even if you are vaccinated, you can still infect the virus by infecting mutants that escape immunity. You should also avoid poorly ventilated indoor environments, wear properly constructed masks, and if possible, purchase some N-95 masks (currently available on Amazon).