Why get your booster shot?
Booster shot for healthcare workers
The booster dose of vaccine is available to ALL healthcare workers 6 months after their 2nd dose of vaccine. This vaccination is another one of the enhanced protections measures, aimed at limiting the spread of the COVID virus in long-term care, seniors’ assisted living and congregate living settings in order to protect residents and staff.
From the BC Ministry of Health:
“Our health care workers have stood at the frontline against COVID-19 for the past two years. Their dedication during this global pandemic has been remarkable. They have shown their outstanding commitment in so many different ways, such as adopting enhanced infection prevention and control measures, explaining the evolving COVID-19 protocols to patients, residents and family members, and promptly receiving their full COVID-19 vaccine series. For this, we thank you.”
Why should healthcare workers get the booster shot?
- Lower Risk of severe COVID: It lowers your risk of hospitalization from COVID (severe COVID) – CLICK HERE to see the risk chart.
- Robust Protection from COVID: Getting the recommended booster dose ensures you continue to get a robust protection against COVID-19 and its many variants of concern, for a longer period of time.
- Protecting yourself, saving lives: By getting your booster, you are protecting yourself, you are saving lives, lowering the risk of spreading COVID-19, and choosing to participate in the sustained protection for everyone.
- Protecting vulnerable residents: The people you work with are some of the most vulnerable to the disease. Older people and those with chronic health conditions have a significantly increased risk of developing severe illness, complications, and dying from COVID-19.
- Reduces risk of infection: Emerging evidence from the UK, Scotland, Denmark and England is showing that a booster dose reduces the risk of infection and of symptomatic infection. There is also emerging evidence from Denmark of a reduction in household transmission when a sick member in the household is boosted.
- Reduces risk of transmission: Recent data from BC shows that the booster dose can prevent as much as 60% of infections with Omicron meaning that you are that much less likely to get it yourself or to pass it on to your family, coworkers or the residents and patients you care for.
- Available immediately for healthcare workers: All health care workers are eligible and prioritized to receive their booster dose now, as long as it has been six months since their second dose.
- Get boosted even if you’ve had COVID: Even if you’ve already had COVID-19, you should still get your booster dose as you remain vulnerable to future infections. Even if you’ve recovered from COVID-19 the infection may not have generated a robust immune response. The booster dose ensures you have a high level of protection that can last longer.
What is a booster dose?
A booster dose is an additional shot of vaccine that helps you maintain and lengthen your protection against severe outcomes of COVID-19 infections, including infections by various variants of concern.
Research shows that the initial vaccine series (two doses) protects you very well against severe disease for many months, but vaccine effectiveness does decrease over time. A booster gets your immunity back up to a desirable level of protection, ensures a longer-lasting protection and sometimes even completely prevents the infection.
Breakthrough infections among fully vaccinated individuals do happen because vaccines are not 100% effective against all symptomatic infections. However, the vast majority of these infections in fully vaccinated individuals are expected to be mild or even asymptomatic.
Hospitalizations, severe disease, and death from COVID-19 among the fully vaccinated are rare.
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