by Linda Straker
- Over 8,000 people have been inoculated
- Some healthcare workers either delaying or refusing to be vaccinated
- Goal is 60% of 112,000 population vaccinated by June/July 2021
One month after commencing the Covid-19 vaccination campaign, the Ministry of Health said that over 8,000 people have been inoculated. Grenada’s goal is to have 60% of the 112,000 population be vaccinated with the AstraZeneca vaccine by June/July 2021.
“To date, we have recorded 8,606 people who received the first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine,” said Health Minister Nickolas Steele who was among the first policymakers to be inoculated with the vaccine. Steele is scheduled to receive his second dose by the end of the month.
At present, the vaccine is available at health centres and other sites set up at strategic locations that are deemed as easily accessible for citizens. “Some days are busier than others, but there is a constant flow of citizens at the vaccination sites,” Steele disclosed.
Steele has, however, expressed disappointment with the number of healthcare workers who are either delaying or refusing to be vaccinated, while at the same time administering the vaccine to those who are choosing to obtain the added protection.
“I think that is unacceptable. They are the ones that have the information, know the benefits of vaccination, have access to all of the proper information if they so choose, so they can make an informed decision as opposed to an emotional decision,” Steele said. “It is worrying that healthcare providers interacting with Covid-19 positive cases or elderly citizens would not want the added protection for them and those in their care…I cannot contemplate how someone, who is on the frontline would contemplate not being vaccinated.”
Scientific research and review have concluded that the vaccine does not stop transmission, but it reduces the possibility of developing severe Covid-19 infection, especially for those with underlying medical conditions such as cancer, diabetes and high blood pressure.
Grenada is scheduled to receive 45,600 vaccines through the COVAX facility as well as receive thousands of free vaccines from the Government of India. The Indian Government has donated 500,000 vaccines for sharing among Caricom members.
Grenada, as of 15 March 2021 recorded 154 Covid-19 cases since the first confirmation were announced on 22 March 2020. Only 2 according to the island’s dashboard are currently classified as active. The 2 active cases, both in self-isolation, are incoming passengers who were each on commercial flights from the United States and Jamaica respectively.
I am appalled to hear the minister of health say: ” There is no death associated with vaccination, not just here in Grenada, in the entire Caribbean and with the use of Astrazeneca; there is no death associated with that vaccine…”
Can the minister of health or anyone of his colleagues confirm when any study was conducted, and the result of such a study, that determined whether a negative correlation existed between people who have died within days of being vaccinated and a specific vaccine administered to those same subjects prior to death?
It is important to specify that correlation does not imply causation. In other words, no one could legitimately deduce a cause-and-effect relationship between deaths post-vaccination and a specific vaccine given prior to deaths.
The minister’s choice of words suggests with certainty that the vaccine is not the cause of death for those who died several hours after being vaccinated. It is impossible for anyone to determine at this early stage whether there is causality in those cases. There are on-going/Work-in-Progress studies to determine whether the vaccines are significantly associated with the cause of deaths for the thousands of people who have died so far within several days of being vaccinated.
Those ongoing studies should have been first conducted with the use of animal subjects, not human beings. Authorities across the globe are condoning the use of human beings rather than animals to conduct experiments on these Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) drugs.
The Federal Drug Administration (FDA) did not approved any vaccine to prevent COVID-19.
On December 11, 2020, the FDA issued an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for the use of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine. On December 18, 2020, the FDA issued an EUA for the use of the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine. The issuance of an EUA is different than an FDA approval (licensure) of a vaccine. The FDA also issued an EUA on February 27, 2021 for the Johnson and Johnson vaccine as means of preventing COVID-19.
Please note: the issuance of an EUA is not the same as an FDA approval (licensure) of a vaccine.
My fellow Grenadians, please do your own research and stop accepting everything you hear or read on every internet site. The facts could be obtained by careful research. If you do your own research, you would be better informed to make decisions that are in your best interest. No one should coerce anyone to take or not take an experimental drugs. That decision is personal. The constitution of Grenada gives every Grenadian freedom to choose; foremost, that’s a God-given right. The moment we give up that right, we immediately expose ourselves to abuse and discrimination by those who have the ability to control and lead.
It disturbs me gravely why leaders in the health profession fail to emphasize the need for everyone to use the natural remedies that God gave us to strengthen our immune systems. Why aren’t our health leaders pushing that need? COVID-19 is a virus; approximately 97% of people who contracted this virus survived to tell their story. Yes, there are people with very weak immune systems; those folks should certainly seek alternative solutions but it MUST BE their choice to accept or not accept a vaccine.
Finally, let it be known that no one who was injected with any type of the vaccines and experienced severe pain and suffering or even paralysis, could hold any of the pharmaceutical companies liable. They made it clear that they would not accept liability and the US government supports their decision. You take a vaccine at your own risk.
Furthermore, it was late last year, I heard that same minister of health in Grenada said: Grenada is COVID-19 free.
So please tell me why is he so eager to vaccinate everybody in Grenada?
All the cases of COVID-19 in Grenada appeared from visitors to the island. Had the government not allowed some visitors entry to the island without enforcing the quarantine regulations, no one living in Grenada would have been affected with the virus. For what I’ve seen happening across Grenada since the first case of COVID-19 was declared, if the air in Grenada was tainted with the virus, the death toll would have been alarming.
Grenadians continued with their lives despite the financial pain they encountered. The trials and errors the government implemented proved to be very successful though at a heavy toll on the poor and needy.
The virus affects a person’s immune system. Anyone with a weak immune system should consider taking measures to aid in their fight against the virus in the event that they find themselves being exposed to the virus.
Continue to wear mask in public places in adherence to the laws of the land, social distance, continue to practice proper hygiene but most of all continue to trust in God who is the greatest physician.
For your interest, please read the contents of the following link:
https://www.fda.gov/vaccines-blood-biologics/vaccines/emergency-use-authorization-vaccines-explained.
Why isn’t the nurse wearing a gloves, while vaccinating people! Isn’t she touching his bare skin with her bare hands! SMH..
Ministers and other very important, well-connected people getting the vaccine, but your ordinary 80 year old, who is at high risk of death from covid, can’t yet get it. Why is that so, Minister Steele? Are you following the science?
I see the plan… government gets money to buy vaccine, people no want it so money left over for a pocket somewhere. I am health care worker, I got the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, happy I did. Think virus not be real? Go to hospital and watch how people die… then say what think.
Why was my post taken down?
There is so much disinformation, misinformation & downright lies & pure ignorance from the ant vax posters. This is the sort of stuff that Facebook takes down as FALSE NEWS. It is doing the human race a big disservice persuading people to risk their lives & the lives of others by not getting vaccinated & bringing the virus under control worlwide. It may not be much of a problem in Grenada but we cannot open our borders & earn the dollars we need to survive. Also many of us cannot see our loved ones who live overseas.
Lovely debate time will tell what was best for the good of humanity. The real effects of the vaccines will only be known after they are taken. There is nothing that is totally bad or totally good for us think about it.
This doesn’t mean that I personally will rush to take the vaccines. However if it becomes a necessity which I don’t think it is as yet for my line of work I will take it. So one must critically assess and make a determination. No one is right or no one is wrong to take the vaccines. Right and wrong is dependent on level of risk to exposure to covid19.
All of you who are encouraging others not to take the vaccine – please don’t complain if you or your family members catch this disease…
Right now the only way out of this pandemic is for as many people as possible to get vaccinated. Vaccination not only gives you a great deal of protection from the disease it also significantly reduces the risk of you passing it on to others.
When sufficient people have been vaccinated around the world and sufficient data has been collected about the risk of transmission after being fully vaccinated (not quite just yet) international travel will hopefully be able to resume for those who have been vaccinated without the need for quarantine.
Those who choose not to get vaccinated will most likely still have to face quarantine
This resumption of travel is what needs to happen to save Grenada from imminent economic collapse.
Think twice before spreading misleading or biased information, the worldwide media has done enough of that without private citizens joining in…..
Grenadians please do not take the vaccines, they are not safe.
18 countries have suspended use of the astrazeneca vaccine, because of safety fears.
Denmark, Norway, Ireland, Estonia, The Netherlands, Thailand, Bulgaria, Iceland, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Latvia, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Cyprus, Portugal and Slovenia. People just do your research, go look on the internet, The news will not report the whole truth. This vaccines, does not stop you from getting Covid or spreading, so what’s the point in taking it. You will recover from it just like if you recover from a cold or Flu.
It’s ironic that you tell people to do their research when, clearly, you have not done your research or even read and comprehend widely published information by reputable scientific organisations.
The scientific organisations have explained many times that the vaccines will protect against severe symptoms, hospitalisation and death, but will not stop the vaccinated person from carrying the virus and infect contacts who have not been vaccinated and are not following the safety protocol.
The reason given for the “suspension” of the AstraZeneca vaccine is that a very small number of vaccinated persons developed blood clots.
Out of 1.6 million people who received the AstraZeneca vaccine in Europe, only 7 developed blood clots, which is a lower proportion than the normal incidences of blood clots in that population. So there is no increase in the number of blood clot cases in the population. Vaccination or no vaccination, a proportion of a population will have blood clots.
Worldwide, 2.9 of every 100k persons die of choking on their food, yet people still continue the dangerous activity of eating.
It’s people like Theresa that should be totally ignored. The vaccine suspensions are largely political, there is no evidence that the vaccine produces blood clots, they happen in such small cases regardless of being vaccinated or not. If you recover from covid like recovering from a cold or flu then you are lucky. If you get total organ failure from the cytokine storm it can produce then you are dead. Get the vaccine as soon as you can, it’s the only weapon we have against this dreadful pandemic.
Delaying to take this vaccine is not a crime but it’s being made to look so. Proper hygiene was all the rage now it’s vaccine, for a virus that is not deadlier than the common flu. But eventually, governments will force it on their people. No vaccine, no job for etc.
Attention seeker.