The point of COVID-19 vaccines

I write this on the very day I received my second COVID-19 vaccine shot. For me, the two-shot protocol was simple in all ways. But I know that hasn’t been the experience of a good number of folks. Please keep trying to make your appointments. I’m confident the process will get better as the communication improves between governmental agencies.

As I look at news reports from other parts of our country, it appears that North Idaho has had fewer problems with getting vaccines and in giving them to the general public. Still, I’m aware from visiting with a few doctors and nurses, the waiting lists for vaccines are longer than they want. The demand is greater than the supply.

But there are other matters about the whole vaccine program that seem confounding to many people. For example, I’ve heard from friends who had COVID-19 recently, and they want to be vaccinated. But they got conflicting information on how long they must wait before getting their shots.

They were told at Bonner General Health that a 90-day waiting period is required. They looked at the CDC website (Centers for Disease Control) and saw no such designated waiting period. Yet when I asked a BGH official about this, she checked the CDC website and found the 90-day period identified.

And just today I saw that word from the state of Idaho is that a 90-day period isn’t recommended. So, what are we to believe? I don’t believe this is intentional misinformation by officials.

I do think it results from officials not having definitive scientific proof one way or another as to what a healthy waiting period looks like. So, the confusion may continue for a time until more evidence identifies a clearer path.

Another example that seems to cloud our understanding about this vaccine: While some of us are under the assumption that once we’re vaccinated, we don’t need to wear masks anymore. Wrong!

First, the vaccination does not prevent us from getting COVID-19. It does offer protection from getting a severe case of COVID if we get the virus.


And to this point: We may get a non-symptomatic case of COVID, so we don’t know if we’re carriers. Without masking and social distancing efforts, we could unknowingly still pass along the virus to someone else. So masks, hand-washing, and social distancing are very valid precautions whether or not we’ve been vaccinated!

To address some of the lingering questions and to dispel some of the misinformation about the COVID-19 vaccine, the Geezer Forum will host a Zoom meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2:30-4 p.m. Please note the date! I call this forum “A Primer on the COVID-19 Vaccine.”

A team from Bonner General Health will be our resource panel: CEO of BGH Sheryl Rickard, Dr. Vince Huntsberger, and coordinators of the BGH Vaccination Clinic, Daniel Holland and Erin Binall. Together, they will give us up-to-date information on how and where to get the vaccine in Bonner County as well as answer questions and dispel rumors that we have about vaccine information and misinformation.

We also hope to have someone from Panhandle Health District to share how PHD’s vaccination program is working.

Please consider joining the Zoom Geezer Forum on Feb. 16: if you haven’t received your vaccinations but want to; if you have doubts about the effectiveness of the vaccinations; if you’ve been vaccinated but still wonder about the whole effort.

Contact me by email if you want to take part. I will send out the Zoom invitation on Monday, Feb. 15.

Paul Graves, M.Div., is lead geezer-in-training for Elder Advocates, Inc., a consulting ministry on aging issues. Contact Paul at 208-619-4971, or elderadvocates@nctv.com.