Front-line workers put fears aside to take the jab

Clarendon had its roll-out of the first batch of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines on Wednesday with doctors, nurses and other front-line healthcare workers coming out to take their shot.

'Miss Reid' who put her fears aside to take the vaccine, said she had some reservations as not only does she suffer from hypertension, but she is on blood thinner.

After receiving the shot, she confessed to THE STAR that she is still a bit fearful, but said that the process "wasn't that bad".

For pharmacist Chad Clarke, his biggest fear was the needle, but he went through the process like a charm, thanks to 'Nurse Fuller' whom he requested to administer the second shot for the day. Among the doctors who took their shots on Wednesday was Ruel Saunders who shared with THE STAR that being in the first batch is a privilege.

Acknowledging that there is some level of fear surrounding the vaccine in regards to how it will affect them biologically, Saunders said it is the safest procedure that have been used over the years to prevent pathology among Jamaicans.

"If I were to advise anybody, I would appeal to take the vaccine so we can reach a level of normalcy as fast as possible. Oxygen is out in the hospitals, people are dying, this thing is real," he said. Addressing the conspiracy theories circulating that the virus is man-made, Saunders said that the reality is that it is affecting the country and the world at large, so he suggested people should "just take the vaccine".

According to Saunders, no one can say without a shadow of a doubt that COVID isn't real as he opined that the evidence is there.

"There is nobody walking on the road pretending to be sick. People are dying, they are not pretending to be dead," he stressed, adding that because COVID is real, real actions should be taken.