HEALTH

Answers to 6 Common Questions about Covid-19 Vaccines

(BPT) - COVID-19 vaccines are authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for widespread use for those who are eligible. But while vaccines are now more accessible, vaccination rates are slowing across the country.

Those still uncertain about whether the COVID-19 vaccine is right for them can look to trusted health experts within their communities like pharmacists to address key questions or concerns about getting the vaccine, the vaccination process, and common or expected side effects. Dr. Kevin Ban, Walgreens chief medical officer, addresses six common questions about getting the vaccine.

1. What are the benefits of getting a COVID-19 vaccine?

Getting a COVID-19 vaccine has many benefits, including reducing the chances of severe illness if you do get sick with COVID-19 and allowing you to get back to pre-pandemic activities, like gathering indoors without a mask. Additionally, getting the vaccine can help prevent you from getting and spreading the virus that causes COVID-19 to those around you.

COVID-19 can have serious, life-threatening complications that may lead to hospitalization, intensive care or even death. There is no way to know how contracting COVID-19 might affect you, or anyone else, so it's important to get the vaccine to protect yourself and those around you. With COVID-19 vaccine rollout, infections have declined significantly, according to the CDC, but more people need to get vaccinated to continue to reduce community spread and protect from variants that have proven to be more transmissible. The benefits of the vaccine outweigh the risks associated with getting COVID-19, Ban said.

2. COVID-19 vaccines were developed quickly, how do I know they're safe?

Vaccines were evaluated in clinical trials with tens of thousands of participants, meeting the FDA's rigorous scientific standards for safety, efficacy and manufacturing quality needed to support emergency use authorization.

In addition, the safe and speedy roll-out of the COVID-19 vaccines is backed up by decades of research from a variety of prestigious medical and research institutions on this type of vaccine. Millions of people in the U.S. have received COVID-19 vaccines and these vaccines have undergone the most intensive safety monitoring in U.S. history, the CDC said. Experts are regularly reviewing and monitoring adverse events to assess whether there is a true safety concern.

Vaccines have played a vital role in protecting the health and safety of communities throughout history.

3. Are there any long-term side effects caused by the vaccine?

Some people will experience no side effects at all, while others may experience common short-term symptoms, like pain at the injection site or tiredness. These are normal signs that your body is building protection against COVID-19 and should go away in just a few days. Talk to your doctor or pharmacist about taking over-the-counter medicine like ibuprofen to relieve any arm soreness or aches you may feel after getting vaccinated.

Serious side effects are extremely rare following any vaccination, including COVID-19 vaccination. The FDA required each of the authorized COVID-19 vaccines to be studied for at least two months after the final dose even though anticipated effects occurred weeks before that. Hundreds of millions of people have received COVID-19 vaccines, and no long-term side effects have been detected, according to the CDC. Pharmacists are trained to respond and manage any instances of allergic reactions in the rare case they occur, as well as report to the CDC.

4. Do I really need more than one dose of the Pfizer or Moderna COVID-19 vaccines?

If you receive a Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, it's vital that you receive both doses to get the maximum protection they provide, Ban said. Although the first dose provides some level of protection, the exact length of time you are protected is unknown. Getting the second dose sends a powerful response to your immune system to boost your antibodies, making them more effective against COVID-19. If you've waited longer than the recommended time between doses, it's better to get the second dose late than not at all. Get the second shot as soon as possible if you missed the recommended window.

5. If I'm young and healthy, why do I need a vaccine?

Although COVID-19 symptoms can vary from person to person, people can get very sick and have complications, long-lasting symptoms or die from contracting the virus. COVID-19 can also be transmitted to others if you're infected, even if you don't have any symptoms. Further, the Delta variant, deemed by the CDC a "variant of concern" for being more transmissible, continues to spread, accounting for more than 10% of COVID-19 cases in the U.S.

Until more people are vaccinated against COVID-19, the virus will continue to mutate. The vaccine is meant to protect not only you, but also those around you, like family members and friends who may have weakened immune systems.

6. Where do I go to get a vaccine?

You can conveniently and safely get the COVID-19 vaccine at numerous locations including your primary care provider, off-site vaccination clinics or at your local pharmacy. Not only do they have pharmacists to help answer any questions you may have, but they are now offering same day and walk-in appointments. For more information, visit Walgreens.com/ScheduleVaccine or call 1-800-WALGREENS.

Brilliant Rutherford Seals Successful Run Chase for Patriots

Sherfane Rutherford goes on the attack during his match-winning half-century, Aug. 29.

Asensational unbeaten half-century by Sherfane Rutherford fired St Kitts and Nevis Patriots to a convincing six-wicket victory over Guyana Amazon Warriors, keeping them unbeaten and top of the Caribbean Premier League standings, Aug. 29.

Asked to chase a tricky 167 for their third victory at Warner Park, the hosts overhauled their target with four balls to spare, with the left-hander Rutherford producing a dashing 59 not out off 34 balls against his former franchise.

Entering at number four, the 23-year-old belted a four and half-dozen sixes in a dazzling Manof-the-Match performance, helping Patriots to gather 54 runs from the last 26 deliveries of the innings.

“It all started from this morning when I woke up with a hunger that whatever position I bat or whatever situation my team is in, I’m going to give it my all to win it,” said Rutherford, who scraped a dismal 39 runs from seven innings for Amazon Warriors last season.

“I had a point to prove so it was good for me to come out here and show what I can do and with a lot of support from my team,” he added. “I want to say thanks to them for giving me the confidence to go out and play with a free mind. After last year I went back to the drawing board. I think I worked very hard coming into this CPL as well because after a bad tournament you don’t want a repeat.”

Windies Rising Stars U19s Receive Covid-19 Vaccines

Members of the West Indies Rising Stars U19s team prepare to get their first doses of COVID-19 vaccinations in Antigua.

Several members of the West Indies Rising Stars U19s team received their first doses of vaccinations against COVID-19 in Antigua, where they have been preparing for their upcoming tour of England.

Cricket West Indies (CWI), in partnership with the Government of Antigua and Barbuda, through the support of the Ministry of Health and the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA), secured COVID-19 vaccines for all interested squad members between the ages of 16 and 18 who received parental consent.

CWI continues to support the efforts of regional governments to encourage everyone to get vaccinated against COVID-19, with the West Indies Women’s team and West Indies Men’s team having received vaccines in recent months.

In a statement CARPHA noted, “CARPHA is pleased to have worked with CARICOM to execute the United States Government donation of 5.5 million Pfizer vaccines to the Caribbean. This will facilitate the vaccination of young persons from 12 years of age, which was not possible before. This is crucial for protecting young people from severe illness and death.”

CWI’s Chief Medical Officer, Dr Israel Dowlat again offered CWI’s appreciation of the support received on the vaccinations and their importance to the squad.

“CWI is fully committed to supporting the vaccination drive throughout the region.” Dowlat said. “We are extremely grateful to have our governments and CARPHA who have been partnering with us to host cricket safely and to get our squads vaccinated.”

The West Indies Rising Stars U19s will depart for England on today where they will play six Youth One-Day Internationals at The County Ground, Beckenham and The Polo Farm, Canterbury from Saturday, September 4 to Friday, September 17. This is part of their preparations for the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup to be hosted by CWI from January 4 to February 3, 2022.

Ugas Stuns Pacquiao to Setup Unifier with Spence

Errol Spence Jr. (27-0-0, 21 KOs) is next on the list for the WBA (Super) welterweight champion Yordenis Ugas (27-4-0, 12 KOs).

After stunning the heavily favored Manny Pacquiao (62-8-2, 39 KOs) in their title bout at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada last month, the Cuban wants a unification bout for his next assignment.

Ugas was the last minute replacement for Spence — Pacquiao's initial foe for the WBC and IBF welterweight titles.

Spence, whose father is Jamaican, had to withdraw from the fight with Pacquiao due to a torn retina for which he has since undergone surgery. Ugas was the defending champion coming into the bout against Pacquiao, as he was elevated to WBA (Super) champion earlier this year.

Pacquiao originally held the belt when he defeated Keith Thurman in July 2019.

The fighting senator was unceremoniously stripped of the title due to "inactivity".

Ugas, though, has earned his laurels as the WBA (Super) titlist with the unanimous decision win over Pacquiao. "I told you, I am the champion of the WBA and I showed it tonight," Ugas said through his interpreter after the victory over the 42-year-old.

As for the unification bout, Spence has already said he plans to face the winner between Pacquiao and Ugas once he recovers.

Jamaica’s 4x1 relay team celebrate their 2021 Olympic finals victory. From left to right, Elaine Thompson Herah, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Shericka Jackson, and Briana Williams.

Jamaican Sprint Queens Dominate Track Season

By Tonya-Lee Grant

Quickness is engraved in the blood, sweat, and tears of Jamaican sprinters, formed by sheer determination and will to produce world records and championship medals.

Jamaica, also known as the “Sprinting Factory,” produced both the world's fastest man (Usain Bolt) and the world's fastest woman (Elaine Thompson Herah) over 100 and 200 meters. In 2021, the world witnessed Jamaica's track and field dominance again with the recent successes of three “Jamaican Sprint Queens.”

This summer, the trio--Shelly-Ann Frazer-Pryce, Thompson Herah, and Shericka Jackson--have dominated the track and field arena with record-breaking wins. Starting in the Tokyo Olympics, Thompson Herah (10.61), ShellyAnn Fraser-Pryce (10.73), and Shericka Jackson (10.76) placed first, second, and third, respectively. The trio secured a new nickname, the “Tokyo Podium.”

“Congrats to Elaine on successfully defending her title,” Fraser-Pryce said on Facebook. “Grateful to make the podium for a 4th final.”

The trio later faced off against the United States's young superstar Sha’Carri Richardson in a showdown at the Eugene Diamond League Classic. There was much anticipation to see how the newcomer Sha’Carri would fair against Jamaica’s Sprint Queens. Richardson missed the Olympics because of a onemonth suspension after testing positive for marijuana. Unfortunately, the competition failed to live up to the hype. The American runner was no match for the Jamaicans. Thompson Herah led Jamaica to victory once more with a jaw-dropping time of 10.54, breaking her record set in Tokyo.

Fraser-Pryce finished second with a time of 10.73, and Shericka Jackson placed third with a time of 10.76. Richardson finished ninth with a time of 11.14.

“Not bad for a Diamond League season 100m opener. New PB, NR, DLR second fastest time ever,” Thompson Herah posted on her Facebook page after the race. “Thank you all so much for the love and support. Continuous improvement is the order of the day.”

Despite the loss, Richardson said she was not disappointed in her return.

“It was a great return back to the sport,” the 21-year-old Richardson said. “I wanted to be able to come and perform. Having the month off, dealing with all I had to deal with, I’m not upset with myself at all. This is one race, I’m not done. You know what I’m capable of. Count me out if you want to, because I’m here to stay.”

At the Lausanne, Diamond league, Jamaica claimed its third clean sweep in the 100-meter finals, despite Thompson Herah’s eight-race winning streak coming to an abrupt end. Fraser-Pryce ran a meet record and personal best of 10.60 at the Lausanne, Diamond league event, Aug. 26th. Thompson-Herah finished second (10.64) and Shericka Jackson came in third (10.92). Fraser-Pryce now holds the third fastest time ever behind Florence Griffith-Joyner (10.49) and Thompson Herah (10.54).

“A new [personal best],” Fraser-Pryce posted on Facebook. “Thank you Switzerland! See you in Paris.”

The world record for the women’s 100-meter sprint is now under immediate threat by not only one Jamaican athlete, but two, as both sprinting queens Thompson Herah and Fraser-Pryce are eyeing Florence Griffith-Joyner 10.49 record.

Jamaican Bobsled Team to Raise Funds to Qualify for 2022 Winter Olympics

Jamaica’s bobsled team, which experienced challenging issues when it first attempted to qualify for the Winter Olympics in 1988 is facing similar difficulties with trying to qualify for the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing.

This has prompted Chris Stokes, former bobsled team member and the author of “Cool Runnings,” the book that inspired the 1993 Disney film of the same name, to form a strategic partnership with Jacob York of Electric Token and Rohan Midha, the sponsorship agent for Jamaica’s bobsled team, to raise the necessary funds for the team’s Olympic qualification through the use of NFTs as an equity source.

“NFT” stands for “Non-Fungible Token.” Non-fungible means that the token is unique and can’t be replaced with anything else. NFTs are meant to show ownership of something that can’t be copied. While an NFT can be anything digital, many current NFTs involve using the technology to sell digital art. For example, while anyone can purchase a print of a Picasso painting, there can be only one owner of the original painting. Another feature of NFTs that is attractive to buyers is that they can be structured to pay the owner a percentage each time the NFT is sold, which means that if an artwork becomes popular and increases in value, the owner receives some of the benefits. As the market for NFTs has grown, some have sold for thousands and even millions of dollars.

This initiative, which is the first of its kind to combine authentic Jamaican digital and physical experiences from music and art with the purpose of securing a place in the 2022 Olympics for the bobsled team, has scheduled the NFT drop for later in 2021. The NFT will feature limited edition digital art highlighting the best of the Jamaican bobsled brand: courage, persistence, and claiming a place in the world “regardless of where you are,” according to Stokes and Midha.

Each of the unique collectibles will be a Jamaican-themed bobsled “wrapped in works of digital 3-dimensional art curated by Florian Tappeser, a digital artist and animator at Genies. The NFTs will include designs for each of the six Jamaican bobsleds that will compete in the 2022 Winter Games. Original work by Jamaican artists selected with input from Electric Token, experts in NFT, and the Jamaican Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport will support each NFT. NFT artist Gabe Weis will be featured in the first of the initiative’s drops.