The article Covid:
The article Covid: Vaccine will not return life to normal in spring by health and science correspondent James Gallagher discusses all the misconceptions people have regarding the Coronavirus vaccine. According to the article, people have to be realistic about what the vaccine will or will not do. And according to Gallagher, one thing the vaccine will not do is bring back the normalcy by spring. According to the article, the restrictions put in place would be eased gradually as the vaccine itself may take up to a year to be available for use. Scientists all over the world are still on the vaccine, a process that usually takes time, but they are, in this case doing it quicker. The article quotes Dr. Fiona Culley, from the National Heart and Lung Institute at Imperial College London, who cautions the public not to be overly optimistic as developing a vaccine is normally plagued with a lot of failures. However, according to the article, the optimism is still there, and this is reiterated by the scientific advisors of the UK government who believe that a vaccine may be ready for some people this and mass vaccination maybe begin by the beginning of next year. But despite all that, this process will be a long one, and people should be patient.
The article also quotes the head of chemical engineering at Imperial College London, Prof Nilay Shah, who warns that vaccination itself will be a lengthy process when the vaccine is finally availed. It may take up to a year for everybody to be vaccinated. The methods and approaches employed in developing the vaccine, for instance, RNA vaccines, have never been used for mass production, proving challenging for the scientists. As Gallagher gathered from the experts he interviewed, the whole process requires a lot of careful thinking. It will need all stakeholders to put in a lot of effort and resources to ensure the whole process is successful and effective.
The article also discusses the results from the data regarding the early trials of the vaccine. It states that the results show that it triggers a response from the immune system and further studies are not conclusive on whether this will be enough to protect people from the virus. According to the article, other scientists are unsure of when an effective vaccine will be available, how quickly it can reach the masses, and if it will be effective enough. Many questions remain unanswered regarding the vaccine. Will a single shot be enough? How well will it work on older people who have an aging immune system? Then there is the question of its long-term impact on the immune system. All these questions have to be addressed before people can start thinking about what they want to do when the vaccine becomes available for all. According to the article, as much as we are all looking at the virus as the savior and rightfully so, we first have to address all the underlying issues so that when the vaccine is finally ready, we will have steps and procedures in place that will ensure that all this effort was not in vain. But above all, we have to be realistic and embrace this new normal.