From Karen Biggs, CEO, to the Menno Place Team – Thoughts on Vaccine

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Dear Staff,

As you are likely aware, multiple COVID vaccines will be approved for use shortly.  It is unclear when we, as long term care workers in Canada, will be able to access the vaccine but our government has committed that our residents and staff will be offered it first hopefully in the next 6 months. On December 7th, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the planned arrival of 249,000 Pfizer vaccines late next week, the Pfizer vaccine takes two shots per person so this will cover 124,500 people.  He also said another 3 million doses are coming next year.  I’m sending this email because I have heard some staff express concerns about taking a newly approved vaccine.  I hope that all of you will carefully assess your upcoming decision and make the choice to get vaccinated.  There has been no information as to if there will some requirement for certain workers to be vaccinated.

Here are some thoughts on the vaccine:

  1. It protects our elders’ lives.  Even if they get the vaccine, we know that the efficacy of vaccines administered to our elders is not as high as when staff take the vaccines.  Translation:  Some residents will not be protected by the COVID vaccine.  We are their protection.
  2. It protects us from COVID.  COVID is a dangerous virus that can kill us.  If we are healthy, this is possible but the chances of this are low.  However, the chances of serious long term side effects are significant.  Some research shows that 50% of people who contract COVID end up with permanent lung scarring and decreased lung function.  There are numerous other possible documented long term effects of contracting the virus.  In short, you don’t want to contract this virus.  This is not the flu.
  3. It protects society at large.  Vaccines are not valuable if people don’t take them.  The more people that take the vaccine, the less likely it is that people in the community will contract it.
  4. It protects our economy.  If we can decrease the prevalence of COVID, society can start to return to the pre-pandemic normal.  We miss movies and concerts and restaurants.  We all want life back to how it was.
  5. It protects our families and those we love.  One celebrity whose partner contracted COVID and almost died said she did not realize that the restrictions were not about protecting her own life.  She said she now understood that the restrictions were about protecting that one person that she loved with all her heart and could not imagine life without.  While we may be willing to risk our own lives, are we willing to risk the lives of that one person or multiple people we love in that way by not taking the vaccine?  Are we willing to risk the lives of our sons, daughters, mothers, fathers, aunts, uncles, grandmothers, grandfathers, husbands, wives, significant others and best friends?
  6. We get to stop having COVID outbreaks and fearing COVID outbreaks in long term care.  Wouldn’t that be amazing?  I forget what my co-workers faces look like.
  7. The vaccines have gone through large trials and the drug companies are highly motivated to make sure their vaccine is safe.  They have completed trials with at least 30,000 people.  If they distribute a vaccine that is not safe, it would likely be the end of that huge multi-billion dollar drug company.  They realize the risks and are not cutting corners.
  8. As with any drug, there is the chance that something was missed and there is a longer term side effect that no one is aware of.  However, vaccines are some of the safest drugs that we take, in comparison to other drugs.  And most of us take these other potentially more dangerous drugs every day.  Perhaps most importantly, if you are concerned about the risk of a vaccine, I think you have to ask yourself the following question:  Which risk would you prefer to take:

The risk of a possible unknown and likely minor side effect from a COVID vaccine OR

Catching COVID and risking dying or having a chance of lung scarring for the rest of your life?

Please think carefully about your own role within the health system and the community at large.  Don’t hesitate to bring your questions or concerns about this or anything else at any time.  We are in this fight together. I plan to do a Virtual Townhall on December 16 at 2pm so staff can ask the me and the Executive Team any questions about our Pandemic Response Plan which is in place trying to protect you and our residents.

Sincerely, Karen Biggs, CEO