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Coronavirus: Vaccinated or not, this isn’t the time for us to drop our guard

Aug 22, 2021 Dr Zulfikar Bux, Features / Columnists

By Dr. Zulfikar Bux
Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine, Vanderbilt Medical Center

Kaieteur News – It seems that we are slowly losing the battle to wipe this virus out of existence and it’s starting to figure out ways to become a permanent fixture in our lives. I believe that the next three months will be critical and we should get clarity on the path this pandemic will take by then. Vaccine hesitancy is holding the world at ransom as there isn’t sufficient herd protection for those that are vaccinated to return to the life that we were accustomed to before the pandemic. Being vaccinated at this stage means that one’s chance of dying or being hospitalised from COVID-19 is extremely low; it doesn’t mean that they are fully immune to the virus. Today, I will share my thoughts on what we need to do until there is clarity on the path of this virus.
Why we shouldn’t drop our guard
Now is not the time for us to be fully relaxed with preventative measures. Being vaccinated doesn’t mean that you are immune to being infected with COVID-19. While a vaccinated person has extremely good protection if they are infected, they can still spread this virus and are prime targets for the virus to mutate and form vaccine resistant strains. The Delta variant is an “efficient beast” that is “gobbling up” the unvaccinated at unprecedented rates. If we drop our guard now and allow the Delta variant to have its way, it will destroy all the progress that would have been made and this has the potential to sink our healthcare system and country in a matter of weeks.
What about masks?
I see the trend, which the vaccinated are taking their masks off especially, if other contacts are also vaccinated. We are not there yet. Many vaccinated individuals are still prime targets for infection and can also spread the virus albeit, at lower levels than an infected, unvaccinated person. The Delta variant is more effective at breaching masks than any other variant. You can therefore imagine the virus load that one will expose themselves to if they do not have a mask on and get exposed directly to the Delta variant. Instead of taking off masks, we should be wearing tighter fitting masks and avoid using the average cloth type masks which the Delta variant passes through with relative ease.
Interact outdoors as much as possible
We need to interact for daily sustenance and to maintain some semblance of mental stability. Being outdoors where there is free flow of air and space for the virus to dissipate, is the best way to interact. Studies have proven this fact and we should take advantage of it and schedule daily interactions in the outdoor setting as much as possible.
Pandemic to endemic?
A pandemic becomes endemic when the infective source (SARS-CoV-2 virus in this case) becomes a constant presence because it could not be eradicated. Experts all over the world are worried about this with COVID-19. We are in a race to prevent this virus from mutating so fast that we cannot keep up with it and it will become a permanent fixture with us like the Flu virus. Vaccines are our biggest weapon to win this race. However, slow distribution of vaccines and vaccine hesitancy means that we are currently behind the virus in the race to victory. Unless there is a drastic change, it seems that the virus will win this race and it will become an endemic. Should this happen, we will have to deal with it possibly in the form of seasonal flare ups and hope that vaccines are developed and taken so that it can be weakened to less dangerous forms with time.
I believe we may have an idea within the next three months or so if COVID-19 will become an endemic. In the meantime, let’s avoid it by keeping our guards up and continue with preventative measures, which will help, prevent it from mutating into vaccine resistant forms.

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