Excerpt from the Jamaica Observer Column published Monday, April 12, 2021
By Jean Lowrie-Chin
THE Ministry of Health’s COVID-19 vaccine roll-0ut continues islandwide this week. Meanwhile, the anti-vaccine WhatsApp messages continue to make the rounds. Those of us who know of the agony of this disease should make a special effort to convince others to take it. Explain to them the “long COVID” condition, in which symptoms can persist for months.
Last Wednesday and Thursday saw a total of 30 COVID-19-related deaths. In a country of three million people, this is an alarming number. It has got to the point at which most of us know someone who has succumbed to the disease.
Teachers, immigration officers, workers in the hospitality industry, and now media workers are eligible for the vaccine. Thank goodness media colleague Dashan Hendricks is fully recovered, Dionne Jackson-Miller is recovering, while Dr. Orville Taylor is struggling with this debilitating virus.
I keep hearing of the courtesy and kindness of our health workers at vaccination centres. A senior who was vaccinated at the Mona Ageing and Wellness Centre (MAWC) at The University of the West Indies (UWI) remarked on the keen attention paid to the seniors by Professor Denise Eldemire Shearer. I was not surprised, as she has sought relentlessly to protect our elderly.
The Ministry of Health’s website ( http://www.moh.gov.jm) has an efficient registration system. Younger folks have been helping seniors to register, and the age eligibility has been lowered. Please assist a senior in getting the vaccine, whether by registering them or by giving them a lift to the clinic.
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