COVID vaccines arrive next week

covid19ch.blogspot.com

Boruch Hashem seems to have flattened the daily average number of cases and that it is no longer rising; we hope IYH will soon not only plateau it but also decrease it. COVID nevertheless remains endemic (always present) in our community and we call on those who are older and who have not yet been ill to take the necessary precautions, especially with regard to overcrowded indoor places and occasions where mask use and social distance not used.

Mitigating this process (to cause far fewer infections) is, of course, a priority for the community. There are different ways to accomplish this: when administered together, it will hopefully lead to the infection disappearing from our midst, and IYH will still keep our institutions open. This should be a multiple approach.

As far as possible, social gatherings should have limited participants and the venues as open as possible to distance themselves. We all need to realize a lot that we do not attend simchas if we do not feel sick in any way. This also applies to children. Everyone who is ill should be tested immediately. If you choose NOT to know, it can only cause the virus to spread.

Those who are sick with COVID and those who are now exposed to someone with COVID should please continue to follow the following isolation and quarantine guidelines: People who are sick with the virus are isolated ten days from the onset of their symptoms. Those now exposed to the infectious individual must quarantine themselves (not socialize) and can be tested after 5 days. If negative, they can leave the quarantine state after day 7, especially with the use and removal of personal mask (as it can be contagious for up to 14 days). If they choose not to be tested, quarantine lasts at least ten days with the same 14 day conditions as above.

Unfortunately, and for both known and unknown reasons, the above imperfectly applied measures have not put an end to the spread of the virus locally, and we are still witnessing the severe loss and disruption caused by the constant presence of the virus. This fact, together with the urgent need for everyone to resume a normal existence, brings us to a brief discussion of the vaccine:

If the government keeps its promise, the vaccine will hopefully be available locally next week, with the current policy initially providing for those over the age of 75 or at high risk of receiving the vaccine (details as set out by the governor) . It should be coordinated with your medical provider, or obtained from one of the urban vaccines that will hopefully be set up soon.

In general, a successful vaccination program holds the greatest promise in eradicating this disease, and we stand firm in the implementation of widespread vaccination. We understand that any intervention in the medical field poses a risk, but as the serious casualties of this disease continue to increase, we must turn to the tools Hashem has provided us, as used in previous epidemics, with the confidence that we do. be free from this plague soon.

We understand that there are many questions regarding the vaccine, both regarding its safety and necessity. IYH we are holding a live webinar session by Dr. Naor Bar-Zeev to address many of the questions that arise. Dr. Bar-Zeev is an infectious disease physician and statistical epidemiologist who has conducted extensive research on vaccines and their development, and is an associate professor of International Health and Vaccination Sciences at the John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Please send questions in advance [email protected], with “vaccine” in the subject line. Alternatively, you can send any questions via Instagram to @gedaliahupdates. We will try to organize the questions that come in and dr. Bar-Zeev organized to address this.

I wish everyone good health,

Good Shabbos!

The Gedaliah Association, in collaboration with Dr Rosen