The Vaccine: A First Person Perspective

As the year of 2021 is here and a vaccine for COVID is finally presenting itself, our new year is welcomed with hope that our lives can resume with some form of normalcy. While the FDA approves the vaccine, our healthcare workers and medical professionals are some of the first to receive the new medical treatment. This includes even our own healthcare professionals from our own city.  Jamie Scheller, a neonatal occupational therapist at Children’s hospital received the vaccine alongside her fellow coworkers. 

    “It felt like I was living through history. I couldn’t stop smiling. All my coworkers were wondering what I was so happy about, I could just feel the progress being made in the room,” she says. Jamie Scheller works primarily in the neonatal and cardiac ICU (intensive care unit). “I typically see premature babies up to about 1 year of age. I do work with other older kids on a casual basis, but not primarily”. Jamie’s day-to-day tasks typically include that of evaluating and treating premature babies using feeding therapy or early oral motor skills. She has also worked with many patients who have developed COVID, primarily premature babies in the -Q. 

    The vaccine was explained as two separate injections. One being the initial vaccine and the second being the booster. But as the U.S. inches closer and closer to releasing the vaccine to the everyday public, questions and concerns have begun to arise…

    Does the vaccine hurt? “Not really,” Jamie states, “ It feels like a normal shot, just a little pinch. It felt almost exactly like a flu shot, but this one left less of a sore feeling”. 

    Have you experienced any side-effects? “I was told I could have a headache, that my arm could be sore, that I could get nausea or a fever,” Jamie explained. Although she has yet to receive the booster shot, her first “priming” vaccination contained almost no side effects, with the exception of a sore arm. She also further explained her coworkers symptoms, which were almost identical to hers. “One friend of mine did get a bit of a headache out of my 20 coworkers, but nothing that couldn’t be managed. The vaccine was optional but all 20 of the OTs (occupational therapists) opted to take it. As she received her booster dose a fe weeks following, she had noticed a few of the side-effects listed above, but nothing that could not be managed.

    Before I ended the interview, I asked her quickly, “If you could say anything to those who are worried about the vaccine, what would it be?” Her response? “I would say that 70-80% of the population needs to get the vaccine to make an impact. I believe that everyone has to do their part to protect not just themselves but our loved ones as well. This vaccine carries 95% effectiveness, it’s one of the most successful in history. This is history, we just need to choose to be a part of it”.