Two seniors share their experiences on getting the COVID-19 vaccine.

 

Seniors islandwide have been getting vaccinated, with some soon to be getting their second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. According to a Yahoo news article, Senior Minister of State for Health Janil Puthucheary said in Parliament in early April that about 60 percent of eligible seniors aged 70 and above and close to 70 percent of those aged 60 to 69 have received the vaccine or booked their vaccination appointments to date.

Ageless Online talked to two seniors to find out more about their vaccination and their side effects to the vaccine:

Drama artiste Catherine Sng, 70, got the news about registering for the vaccine from the newspaper and her community centre sent over the link for her to register. Though she did not do any research on the available vaccines or their safety, she nonetheless read and listened to whatever was available in the newspaper and on TV.

“I decided to get vaccinated to protect myself as well as those that I might be in contact who may not be able to get vaccinated like children,” said Catherine, who was not concerned at all about getting vaccinated.

After registering, she got the notification to book her slots “almost immediately after”. She got her first dose of the Pfizer vaccine in February and the second dose the following month, and had no side effects from either dose. She added: “Everything went fine and I actually went straight back to work after the second jab.”

A frequent volunteer, Mary Rose Kannabiran, 72, also did not do any research on the vaccines. She received a letter in the mail to register to get vaccinated. Initially, the retiree was slightly apprehensive about getting vaccinated as she didn’t know how effective the vaccine would be. But, after listening to the news and hearing different perspectives, she felt it was to her benefit to take it. So, in March, she had her first dose and her second dose was on Good Friday. With the first dose of the Pfizer vaccine, Mary had no side effects but with the second dose, her left leg swelled a bit.

“I rested my leg for a short while on a stool and after that it was ok. I did simple leg exercises taught by my physio. I also took Panadol just in case for fever,” she said. On the second day, everything was back to normal and she returned to doing her household chores, and did a walk and met up with her neighbours.

With the various COVID variants coming out, she is not concerned whether the vaccine may not be effective. According to a news article, even if the vaccines are less effective against some of the variants, they still provide some level of protection from becoming sick with COVID-19. Mary said: “Getting vaccinated is good particularly when things open up and we travel to other countries. If you are concerned about the vaccine, get your doctor’s advice.”

She added: “I would advise other seniors to take the vaccine as the Government is doing its best compared to other countries, and it is free. The Government is looking after our welfare well.”