Are you allowed to attend?

Okay, so as we are trying to return society to normal, take our masks off and get back to work how do you feel about it. Of the people that I work with there are those that will never be vaccinated come what may and don’t care about wearing masks or who they mix with right through to those that will be wearing a mask in any public setting for years to come. I decided to get vaccinated and as I have had the virus as well I assume that I am pretty well protected. However, I do still wear a mask and feel a bit avoidant of those that have chosen not to be vaccinated. Is it okay to treat the vaccinated and unvaccinated in the same way? 

Should us, the vaccinated, allow those that refuse to have the Covid vaccine to access the same events as us? Does this create a two tier society of exclusions? Or is it reasonable to expect people to comply? If you are not vaccinated do you feel safe and secure attending events with vaccinated or unvaccinated people? Or do you see the vaccine as unnecessary?

The current wisdom seems to be that those who are vaccinated can still get the virus but with much reduced symptoms. Those that are not vaccinated who do get the virus are at far greater risk of serious illness and even of death. Considering the currently known and the likely unknown future variants the risk gets ever greater.

Talking with people moving back to the workplace the vaccination issue is, in many cases, having an effect there. I hear some people insisting that they will not share an office, attend meetings or go for lunch or dinner with someone who has not been vaccinated. I have also spoken with people that will not allow anyone who has not been double jabbed to come to their house even if they are family. I did point out that a vaccinated person was at more risk of passing the virus on to the unvaccinated than the other way around.

It seems that in this one where we are dammed if we do and dammed if we don’t. I hear it repeated many times that those who refuse the vaccine are just being selfish in that they put others at risk. Should we be taking the vaccine to protect our self or to protect others?

Take a look at how many people on public transport or in shops are no longer wearing masks. There is still a strong recommendation that we wear a mask on public transport, in a shop or when we enter or leave a cafe/restaurant/pub to minimise the risk of passing the virus on to the unvaccinated people! 

So should we wear a mask? Just looking around it seems that a high proportion of people are choosing not to. It seems that many of these non mask wearers have also chosen not to be vaccinated. Yet it is these people that are at the highest risk from the virus not the vaccinated.

It is easy, after all this time of Covid restriction, to become Covid blind and just give up on all the protections and procedures. I am as fed up with it all as everyone else though for me it is important that we not minimise the current and future risks and effects of Covid. It will be with us for sometime yet and we do need to continue to protect ourselves and others. 

A part from recovering medically we need to recover socially. We need to get back to being the group animals that we truly are. The sad thing is that if we were to exclude all of the unvaccinated from social events we will only extend the social recovery time for the whole of community. We might all be in danger of losing contact with friends and family perhaps forever.

It is important to recognise that the many people who have an annual flu vaccine are still happy to mix with people who are not vaccinated. I do not see people considering and worrying about the consequences of this. We simply see it as a choice, flu jab or not? Perhaps we now need to see Covid in the same way. Covid jab or not? In the end who is at the most risk?

It has to be that those at most risk of Covid are the non vaccinated or those that are choosing not to take the second jab. Those that are vaccinated may become infected with the virus though they will probably only have mild symptoms. It is the unvaccinated who remain at the highest risk.

I suspect that this will an ongoing issue that may last for years. Will the vaccinated allow the unvaccinated to attend events? This might include all social and family events from weddings to funeral services. The effects on travel will remain for a long time to come. Should we have a covid passport to allow us to travel or attend concerts and sports events? We have some serious decisions to make to avoid a divided society.

For me I choose to be vaccinated to protect my family and the client group that I work with. I had the virus before I was vaccinated and apart from some long term lung issues I have survived it okay. However, I do know of many people who did not. For me the choice is yours and hopefully if you choose not to be vaccinated and do contract Covid your symptoms will be mild. 

Take care and be happy

Sean x

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