Q
: What does research tell us about the COVID-19 vaccination ?
A
: One thing to always remember when discussing anything related to COVID-19 is that this is a very new disease and none of us — scientists , the medical profession , governments , or the public — have the full story available to us yet .
The science of COVID-19 is constantly being updated and at a very rapid pace . What we knew yesterday informs what we know today , and we are bound to know even more tomorrow . Our knowledge is evolving faster , probably , than any other scientific research field that has ever been put under the spotlight . This is for quite obvious reasons — the world needs to get out of lockdown and return to normal as quickly as it can and cannot do that without the vast amount of research that is taking place .
Q
: Should I take the vaccine when it is offered ?
A
: The field of vaccine development is just one of the areas of research that has been racing ahead to combat this pandemic , although it is probably the most prominent . A number of concessions have been made by governments and the research community to push forward the development of the vaccines that are in circulation now around the world .
That is how we have these enormous vaccination programmes that have already given over a billion doses , with the number of people who are fully vaccinated now in the hundreds of millions worldwide . It would normally take years for a vaccine to go from development to use in live humans . This effort has taken just months , but there is no evidence that the vaccines we have available are unsafe or lack efficacy . Quite the contrary .
Health authorities everywhere will tell you that if a vaccine is available to you , you should take it , full stop , and follow the guidelines given by the manufacturer . If it ’ s a two-dose vaccine , take both doses . In developed healthcare systems , there will eventually be enough doses to go around , so it ’ s everybody ’ s responsibility to take advantage of them .
Q
: Are two doses needed even after recovering from COVID-19 ?
A
: There is evidence that two doses are not essential , but they are advisable . Recent research has shown that the antibodies developed by the body after recovery from COVID-19 are at a similar level as those generated by a single dose of the Pfizer vaccine . That should be sufficient protection for anyone who is healthy and without risk factors for serious disease .
But that is just research finding things out , and there is no doubt it is useful to know this . At the very least , it speaks to the efficacy of the vaccines . But governments have a responsibility to protect their citizens as fully as possible , and they aren ’ t going to change their guidance based on findings like this when they ’ re in the midst of giving out millions and millions of doses as quickly as possible .
In terms of practicalities , it wouldn ’ t be manageable to tailor the number of doses in an enormous vaccination programme to those who have had a COVID-19 infection and those who haven ’ t . So my advice is to stick to the guidelines . Get vaccinated when you get the chance and have two doses if the vaccine you are given requires it .
Dr Kiran Dhillon
Dr Kiran Dhillon is a public health consultant in the UK who advises healthcare trusts .
GlobalHealthAsiaPacific . com JUNE 2021
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