We have all felt that glimmer of hope that this pandemic would soon be behind us. Be it due to vaccine developments or cases declining, some sense of normalcy felt within reach. That was, until the Delta variants began to take hold and cases began to skyrocket, signaling the onset of the 4th wave. Whispers of a vaccine passport have been going around for some time and now that cases have begun to rise again this option is being utilized as an additional safety measure.
What exactly is a vaccine
passport? As defined by the Quebec government website on Aug 13th 2021 it is:
"A free official document showing that the holder is protected against
COVID-19... It will not show your personal information or information
about your medical or vaccination history." The criteria for where it will
be used may vary based on the number of baseline cases and new cases in the
community, however, it will not be required for access to essential services
like education. While there may be mixed feelings surrounding this passport, I
would like to share why this is an important measure in protecting our rights
and freedoms.
Firstly, regardless of your
personal opinion on what constitutes a violation of your rights and freedoms,
this virus doesn't care. As humans who coexist together in society, it is
inevitable that we will be in close proximity to each other. Be it at the
supermarket, on sidewalks, in schools, etc., we all share communal spaces. We
are currently dealing with a virus that is predominantly transmitted from
person-to-person through droplets emitted via coughing, sneezing, talking,
etc. These droplets can go pretty far but most land within six feet of the
source. This is why the established safe social distance is to keep a minimum
of six feet apart. Masks are another added barrier to trap some of these
droplets at the source and prevent them from travelling to others. Put the
masks and social distancing together, and you've significantly reduced the risk
of viral transmission. These minor inconveniences of wearing a mask and sitting
further apart allow all of us to mitigate some of the risk of infection thus
helping to maintain our freedom to come and go as we please. The vaccine is
simply another mechanism to mitigate risk while we go about activities of daily
living.
None of these interventions in
isolation are perfect, which is why combining them makes them that much more
effective. Irrespective of your vaccination status it is still possible to
transmit COVID-19 asymptomatically or pre-symptomatically. We've already seen
this in hospital outbreaks among fully and partially vaccinated people. You may
not show signs of infection yet or at all but be capable of infecting other
people. This is why the "but I feel fine" or "I haven't seen
anyone except two friends" are not valid excuses. You have no way of
knowing who your contacts have seen, and if they may be asymptomatically
transmitting the virus to you. This is supported by the fact that 35% of
Canadians infected with COVID-19 came from a source that was unknown.
The vaccine is proven to be
safe and efficacious at reducing the transmission and severity of COVID-19
infections. By reducing the viral load, there are less viral particles present
in the droplets coming out of peoples' noses and mouths. Here we have what I
like to call the triple threat against spreading COVID-19: decrease the viral
particles in droplets through vaccination, trap the droplets in the mask, and
keep six feet apart so the remaining particles can't make it to others. It's
simple yet effective.
I know one of the biggest
worries by those who are vaccine hesitant is the safety of these vaccines. Let
me share some statistics to reassure you on this. As per Health Canada data
from December 2020 to July 2021, serious adverse events after vaccine
administration occurred in 0.006% of all 49,022,551 doses administered - this
represents an extremely small proportion of the vaccinated population.
Inasmuch, 84.8% of hospitalizations and 82.1% of deaths were among the unvaccinated,
compared to 7.0% and 7.8% of those partially vaccinated, and 0.8% and 1.3% of
those fully vaccinated. But what about the long-term safety of these vaccines?
Based on the decades of data we have on previous vaccines, the risk of any long-term
consequences following vaccine administration is extremely unlikely. Most
adverse events occur within six weeks of receiving the vaccine, and there are
multiple ongoing monitoring processes in place to catch and quickly act on any
alarming side-effects that may arise. We saw this at work when concerns emerged
about blood clots with the Astra-Zeneca vaccine. It was quickly pulled from the
market to be further studied and re-evaluated.
So, to recap, we've shown that
these vaccines are safe and our triple threat approach helps to decrease
transmission and ultimately hospitalization/death from COVID-19. So what's
next? This is where the vaccine passport comes into play; this is a way to
promote the rights and freedoms of those who have embraced this triple threat
approach. Since they have significantly reduced their risk of
transmission/severe disease, they are now allowed to engage in MORE activities
that were previously deemed unsafe. This is not a means of infringing on the
rights of anti-vaxers but promoting the rights and freedoms of those who are
fully vaccinated to engage in activities as they choose. At present, you have
the right to choose to refuse vaccinations. However, like all choices we make
in life, you have to accept the consequences.
These public health measures
follow the same reasoning as to why smoking is no longer allowed indoors and in
many public spaces - to protect those around us. You cannot tell who is
immunocompromised just by looking at them. That woman standing next to you on
the metro might be pregnant and immunocompromised. The young gentleman passing
you in the grocery store might have cancer and be on chemotherapy. Until we
don't share the same air (which I don't foresee happening anytime soon)
your actions (where you go, who you see) have a DIRECT EFFECT on the people
around you. People need to use public transit to get to work because many
cannot afford any other alternative. Not everyone can have the luxury of having
their groceries delivered. People with multiple medical conditions may have no
choice but to have frequent hospital visits for care and have to wait their
turn for hours in the waiting room. Our triple threat approach is a means of
protecting everyone, but especially the most vulnerable people who need it,
which could be any one of us. Things happen, life changes, people get sick. You
never know when it might happen to you. This passport is a tool aimed at
balancing the safety for us all, while trying to restore a degree of freedom
and quality of life that we've all lost since the onset of this pandemic. We
owe it to each other to support and protect one another.
So be smart, be safe, do your
research. Get the vaccine. You never know whose life you will save in the
process.
References
Canada, Public
Health Agency of. “COVID-19 Daily Epidemiology Update.” Canada.ca,
28 May 2021,
health-infobase.canada.ca/covid-19/epidemiological-summary-covid-19-cases.html?stat=num&measure=total&map=pt#a2.
Canada, Public
Health Agency of. “COVID-19 Vaccine Safety: Weekly Report on Side Effects
Following IMMUNIZATION.” Canada.ca, 10 June 2021,
health-infobase.canada.ca/covid-19/vaccine-safety/#safetyIssues.
Canada, Public
Health Agency of. “Government of Canada.” Canada.ca, / Gouvernement
Du Canada, 29 June 2021,
www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/2019-novel-coronavirus-infection/health-professionals/main-modes-transmission.html.
“Covid-19 Vaccination Passport.” Gouvernement
Du Québec,
www.quebec.ca/en/health/health-issues/a-z/2019-coronavirus/progress-of-the-covid-19-vaccination/covid-19-vaccination-passport.
“Key Things to
Know about Covid-19 Vaccines.” Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/keythingstoknow.html.
“Safety of
Covid-19 Vaccines.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/safety/safety-of-vaccines.html.
