Coronavirus 5: Let the Vaccination Begin

[Ozlsn]

2 hours ago, adidas said:

More lockdowns and restrictions are coming into play in 3 hours ? 

I literally just saw the news update, I am so sorry. I hope you are OK, this on/off lockdown really sucks, especially with school holidays too. I hope the weather stays mild enough that you can at least walk each day.

[Smee]

5 hours ago, adidas said:

More lockdowns and restrictions are coming into play in 3 hours ? 

It’s worrying. I think the NSW numbers tomorrow are going to be pretty high. I’m not covered by the lockdown, just the extra restrictions (I’m in newcastle) but the school holiday exodus up the coast does not fill me with confidence.

[adidas]

9 hours ago, Smee said:

It’s worrying. I think the NSW numbers tomorrow are going to be pretty high. I’m not covered by the lockdown, just the extra restrictions (I’m in newcastle) but the school holiday exodus up the coast does not fill me with confidence.

Oh I’m not in Sydney either, but most of my family is so we are trying to reschedule a bunch of our plans (including a wedding). 

I think this lockdown was necessary - I’m worried and I think Gladys took too long to make the decision. I’m very concerned about the Virgin crew member who has tested positive. 

[Ozlsn]

9 hours ago, Smee said:

It’s worrying. I think the NSW numbers tomorrow are going to be pretty high. I’m not covered by the lockdown, just the extra restrictions (I’m in newcastle) but the school holiday exodus up the coast does not fill me with confidence.

There were "jokes" about people taking off early on Thursday to beat the lockdown - certainly I know people who drove 18 hours to get back into Victoria before the borders shut again and they had to isolate. I really hope this lockdown is a good circuit breaker though.

[smittykins]

Today at church, we resumed giving handshakes at the Peace and distributing the cup at Communion.

[PreciousPantsofDoom]

On 6/27/2021 at 8:04 AM, smittykins said:

Today at church, we resumed giving handshakes at the Peace and distributing the cup at Communion.

That's interesting. Mr PPODs Church stopped the handshakes years ago during the SARS outbreak (2003?). I can't remember now if they ever gave the official ok to resuming handshakes,  but the majority of the congregation just stopped the practice for good. People look around to make eye contact and nod or bow or whatever as they bid each other peace. Only a very few people were back to shaking hands when they had to stop for Covid. 

They never did the shared Communion cup thing. 

[Smee]

Has anyone in here had the Astra Zeneca vaccine? The Australian rollout has been slow, with only AZ and Pfizer approved/available and limited stocks. Until Monday, the health advice was only to give AZ to over 50s and those who had already had the first dose, because of the blood clot risk. They were going to stop using it altogether and just focus on Pfizer, which is currently still limited to healthcare workers, carers, people at high risk etc. It wasn’t really a problem when all our covid was overseas arrivals in hotel quarantine. But now we have a bunch of cases of the delta strain with people who have been out in the community, states/cities are locking down again and the health advice has changed to say anyone, any age, can go to their doctor and ask for the AZ.

I’m 32 and don’t work in any kind of industry that would make me eligible, so I’m way down the priority list for Pfizer (understandably). The wait time between doses for AZ is long, meaning if I was going to become eligible for Pfizer in the next 10 weeks I could be fully vaccinated before I could get the second dose of AZ anyway. But who knows when I actually WILL become eligible, and some immunity is better than no immunity, right? So I should go get the AZ? I don’t have any history of clots and my understanding is it’s less risky than the pill in that regard, so I’m not too worried about that, it’s just the complete 180 on the government health advice and the long wait between doses that is confusing me.

[Ozlsn]

@Smee it's very frustrating the way the information and eligibility keeps changing. Personally I would have tried to get AZ if they hadn't opened the vaccination here when they did, but obviously it's an individual thing. Good luck with it (and hope it's easier to get bookings where you are!)

Also FWIW Dr Norman Swan is basically in favour of getting whatever vaccine you can - Coronacast is a very useful podcast at times (also only 10 mins/weekday which means I can keep up!)

Edited June 29, 2021 by Ozlsn

[PreciousPantsofDoom]

@Smee I got AZ for my first dose at the end of April. I'm in my 50s,so older than you, but I am a teacher on call and it was getting a bit scary working in schools. I had the option of waiting a bit longer for Phizer/Moderna, but I didn't want to wait any longer. The advice here (Canada) was also to take whatever vaccine you can get.

Of course you have to take into account your own risk factors, (the current risk of getting Covid in your area, how much contact you have with others in your life/job etc, as well as your own health and any other risk factors you already have for blood clots.

As far as wait times for your second dose go, what happened here was that the wait times changed significantly from when I got my first dose until now, mostly because of changes in supply.

When I got my first shot, they were saying it would be up to 16 weeks to get the second. I just (as in 2 hours ago!) got my second dose 8 weeks after the first one.

We were given the option of mixing vaccines for our second dose here. If I had taken AZ for my second dose I could have gotten it even earlier. I waited until today for an mRna vaccine (turned out to be Moderna.) 

They have been getting very good uptake rates for vaccines here so far (we are at 78% for first doses, less for second doses, but steadily increasing) and that has sent the Covid infection rates plummeting. They have just announced relaxing of a ton of restrictions starting July 1st as a result. 

Up to you what you do, but I don't think there is a wrong answer in this one as long as you get something! 

[adidas]

I’ve just had my second Pfizer … it hurt more than the first but I’m hopeful that I won’t have a reaction ?

[Dandruff]

3 minutes ago, adidas said:

I’ve just had my second Pfizer … it hurt more than the first but I’m hopeful that I won’t have a reaction ?

My first Pfizer shot was painless and the second hurt but, overall, I had milder and shorter-lived side effects after the second than the first.

[adidas]

18 hours ago, Dandruff said:

My first Pfizer shot was painless and the second hurt but, overall, I had milder and shorter-lived side effects after the second than the first.

I’m feeling fine - my arm is sore and I keep waiting to feel terrible.  But … nothing so far!

[adidas]

I spoke too soon. Feeling rubbish. But it’s better than getting Covid. 

[Ozlsn]

7 hours ago, adidas said:

I spoke too soon. Feeling rubbish. But it’s better than getting Covid. 

Oh crap, I hope the symptoms pass soon. 

[adidas]

10 hours ago, Ozlsn said:

Oh crap, I hope the symptoms pass soon. 

Thanks ❤️ I’m feeling a lot better today - not quite 100% but heaps better than yesterday. 

What a mess we are in. Palaszczuk is a buffoon and Gladys is culpable. Scotty from Marketing needs to step up and do something about this situation. Hotel Quarantine is a farce. I usually roll my eyes at Sunrise but I’m cranky at ABC News so it’s what’s on. 

Police need to be out issuing fines in Eastern Sydney. This is NOT what lockdown should look like. It’s no wonder our state numbers are not decreasing. 

[Ozlsn]

Just now, adidas said:

Police need to be out issuing fines in Eastern Sydney. This is NOT what lockdown should look like. It’s no wonder our state numbers are not decreasing. 

Wow. I'm.. there's not one person wearing a mask in that photo (yes, outside, but we still have a lot of super cautious people if there's a chance anyone will get within 1.5m). 

At least the cases are predominantly in quarantine/isolation, and there doesn't appear to be the exponential growth happening yet. My big fear is always asymptomatic /low symptomatic transmission until it hits a very vulnerable population (e.g. nursing homes again) and then another explosion in numbers and severe disease.

At least the vaccination numbers have jumped, despite the best efforts of various politicians to apparently screw it up.

[adidas]

31 new NSW cases (from 73,600 tests) ?

Great testing numbers - but people are still out and about. We are not going to get on top of it if people don’t stay at home. 75 people were fined in the past 24 hours - including a Sydney couple who went on a road trip up through northern NSW and back down to Dubbo (they got caught at the zoo) ?

To be completely honest I’m more worried about NT at the moment. I’m selfish and I want to see my family, but we can’t let it get into the remote communities outside of Darwin. We’ve already done enough to decimate them. 

Well done Victoria on 0 new cases! You guys have done a Bradbury for sure. 

[Ozlsn]

1 hour ago, adidas said:

Well done Victoria on 0 new cases! You guys have done a Bradbury for sure. 

Trust me, we had enough practice at falling over first.

We all know there will be another outbreak here, we're just waiting for the other shoe to drop. NT is worrying - as you said, there is such a high risk in Indigenous and remote communities. I hope they can get the rollout going better there.

Hang in there. 

[PreciousPantsofDoom]

14 hours ago, Ozlsn said:

Indigenous and remote communities. I hope they can get the rollout going better there.

I don't know much about the Indigenous population of Australia, but I'm going to guess their situation is something like the situation among our Indigenous population here in Canada. Indigenous people here are at much higher risk from Covid because of super crappy living conditions and poor access to Health Care. For that reason the Government put them in the first phases of vaccine rollout and made some effort to get it into the arms of people in those remote Indigenous communities.

Of course they had to be reminded that a huge number of Indigenous people no longer live in those communities, and that Urban Indigenous people are also at high risk since many also live with crappy living conditions and many find accessing proper health care difficult even in Urban areas. 

I think that vaccination this number of people is always going to be challenging. It's unfortunate that it has to be government to handle it, since they are the ones with the resources to do so, because governments are often not the best at doing things logically or quickly. Governments also tend not to respond to problems by quickly pivoting to better methods, so I think that has hampered vaccine rollouts everywhere. 

Having said that, our rollout has been going well, more or less.  They will reach people who are physically hard to get to, and they are doing better at reaching people who are hard to reach for reasons of language or culture, but I think we are going to hit what I call the Wall of Idiots pretty soon. Some of those Idiots will continue to refuse, some will eventually do it, but it's going to be a stupid slog to persuade them. 

On that note, I was talking to a friend the other day. She belongs to an Evangelical church (although she has never tried to Evangelize me.) She, her husband, and their 13 year old daughter have all had their first vaccination and are just awaiting their turn for their second. She told me that both of her brothers (also Evangelicals) are not getting their vaccinations. One is a Cop and the other is a Financial Planner, but apparently both are now experts in Virology?  They keep reading bullshit articles and telling her the vaccines are dangerous. The latest thing they said was that she shouldn't have let her daughter get the vaccine because it contains nano particles that will accumulate in her ovaries and affect her future child bearing. Of course dying of Covid may also affect her child bearing future, so there is that. 

What pisses me off about her brothers attitude is that they like to think they are so Christian. If it was only their health /life they were risking, then that is their problem, but this is one of those things that you only partly do for yourself. Yes, I don't want to get Covid so I got vaccinated, and I don't want my friends and family to get Covid, so I try to ensure that they get their vaccines too, but I also know that I'm doing it because I understand it's for the good of everyone. You'd think that would align very well with being Christian, but apparently thinking of others doesn't apply to vaccines. ?

 

 

 

 

Edited July 2, 2021 by PreciousPantsofDoom
Why the hell would my phone think I meant to type "peek old" instead of "people!" wtf!

[adidas]

Words from Joe Hildebrand: ‘The stupid mistake that’s crippling Australia’

[quote]
This week’s spectacular intervention from Queensland’s chief health officer, however, was no laughing matter. It was disgraceful, it was dangerous and it should immediately disqualify her from public office.

Speaking after the federal government announced it would allow people under 40 to get the AstraZeneca jab if their GP approved, Dr Jeannette Young made this extraordinary public statement:

“I don’t want an 18-year-old in Queensland dying from a clotting illness who, if they got covid, probably wouldn’t die. We are not in a position that I need to ask young, fit, healthy people to put their health on the line (by) getting a vaccine that could potentially significantly harm them.”

For a public health officer to publicly raise the spectre of an innocent youngster dying from vaccination in the middle of a national vaccination campaign is probably the single most damaging thing anyone could do to derail an immunisation rollout – and in Australia that’s a highly competitive field.

There is no doubt the federal government’s vaccine strategy – or what’s left of it – has been slow, piecemeal, confused and clumsy. But these major and multiple failings pale into nothing compared to Young’s outrageously alarmist declaration, one that will likely be a touchstone to anti-vaxxers for years to come.

[/quote]

Photo from Facebook ?

Edited July 2, 2021 by adidas
I can’t seem to fix my messed up quote tags

[Ozlsn]

It was one of the more bizarre statements from this pandemic. I know 60 year olds that are waiting to get Pfizer because of perceived risk - it is frustrating as hell that a CMO would come out with something as obviously unnuanced as that. The advice remains the same here - if you're looking at the AZ and you gave questions then talk to your GP and make an informed choice.

Also good to see the National Cabinet now has a plan, even though it begs the question of WTAF has been happening for the last 14 months and still looks very... handwavey. I did like this short thread though (in spoiler):

Spoiler

Honestly, with the exception of the religious discrimination bill it feels like ScoMo has to be forcibly dragged to any kind of actual action and commitment.

[Smee]

I’m feeling positive about the fact that nsw is not (yet) having exponential growth. The amount of people still socialising is worrying, and will take even longer to get things back under control, but I was fully expecting daily figures in the 100s by now.  Vaccination in high risk places like aged care also appears to be helping, which is a relief.

As for Scotty from Marketing and his “plan”, he’s useless and needs to just retire to a life as a daggy dad seeing as that’s what he’s best at.

[WiseGirl]

Keep masking people ... because we are still at risk from those that won't or can't....even if you are vaccinated. 

https://www.hellomagazine.com/royalty/20210705116783/kate-middleton-self-isolating-kensington-palace/

[Coconut Flan]

Because this protocol works so well:

https://www.thedailybeast.com/covid-free-dance-party-infects-160-revelers

Quote

650 people who attended the Aspen Valley disco in the Dutch city of Enschede had to prove they were vaccinated or COVID-free, but 165 have already tested positive in the aftermath.

 

[Coconut Flan]

Another consideration:

Quote

Pfizer Inc.’s Covid-19 vaccine appears to be less effective in halting the spread of the delta strain of the virus, though it is shielding against severe illness, according to data from Israel’s government.

The vaccine protected 64% of people against the illness between June 6 and early July, down from 94% between May 2 and June 5, the Ynet news website reported, citing Health Ministry numbers. The drop in effectiveness coincides with the government lifting virus restrictions at the start of June, just as the new variant was beginning to make inroads.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-07-05/israel-sees-decline-in-pfizer-vaccine-efficacy-rate-ynet-says