Cape Town - Within the next two weeks, South African health-care workers will be receiving their first shots of the Covid-19 vaccine.
A psychiatric medical officer in Cape Town, Dr Tevin Naidu, says health-care workers and the general public should be mindful of their mental health during a time when people could be anxious about the vaccine rollout.
The Department of Health is set to kick off its three-phase vaccine rollout plan, with health-care workers, the elderly, and people with comorbidities being targeted first.
On Monday, a million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine landed at OR Tambo International Airport from the Serum Institute of India (SII).
Here is his letter on how people can prioritise their mental health.
With the vaccine rollout around the corner, it is clear that the anxiety levels of South Africans are on the rise. A common theme, when it comes to political decision making, is the lack of interest in the mental health repercussions of any newly implemented policies.
Mental health is always neglected until it's too late. Even health-care workers have joined the panic – and it makes sense. This will be the first time a vaccine, developed recently, will be actively implemented into society – and health-care workers are on the front line once again.
Health-care workers are working in highly contagious environments, with limited access to PPE, unreasonable working hours, poor governmental support structures and now we also have to deal with being the first to receive a newly developed vaccine amid all this chaos. Anxiety, nervousness, fear, resentment and anger are all valid reactions to such an outrageously atypical situation.
Health-care workers are also at the scientific forefront, so any expressed scepticism towards a vaccine tends to look "unscientific". Nobody wants to be called an "anti-vaxxer", especially not "well-educated health-care professionals". This means that many have to deal with the inner turmoil and keep it to themselves.
Other health-care workers are openly refusing to vaccinate and claim that a government enforcing vaccines on them is an infringement on their human rights. But why have those, who advocated and fought for use and development of vaccines, suddenly become afraid of a scientific tool that has saved millions?
It's because most vaccines are developed over years and further studied for many more. This makes the prediction of long-term side effects easier and more reliable. Generally, in order for scientific trials or studies to occur, researchers require funding. Funding does not come easy nor does it come fast. On top of that, funded studies require approvals from ethics boards and have to go through several other administrative and logistical affairs. It can take years just getting a research project started.
The unique situation that comes with Covid-19, however, is that, for the first time, the entire planet has come together. This allows us to skip many of the above-mentioned processes. The urgent nature of the pandemic makes emergency funding a reality. Also, because of the global interest in this pandemic, it means that intercontinental collaborations have allowed scientists to work together to ensure the best quality of medicine is provided to the entire planet. Mistakes that were made in some countries were avoided in other countries due to this collaborative approach.
The catastrophic nature of the pandemic has also escalated the developments of new technologies and innovative thinking throughout the planet. We've always known that in times of war, science and technologies tend to rocket in terms of productivity. It therefore makes sense that this war with microscopic organisms has led to some technological revolutions, the vaccines being some of them.
We have no way to convince the masses that a vaccine is 100% safe from a long-term, side effect profile, point of view. What we do know (from an evidence-based and historic perspective), is that it is rare for vaccines to cause any noticeable long-term side effects. We also know that because these vaccines are mRNA versions, the fear of being injected with the virus can be eliminated.
Why the fear? No one enjoys being a guinea pig, whether you're a well educated health-care worker or a poverty-driven street dweller. The rise of misinformation, disinformation, propaganda and hate speech, coupled with corrupt politicians, selfish billionaires and profit-driven pharmaceutical companies, have been the driving forces behind the pernicious new form of "scepticism" that is affecting what could be a life-saving intervention.
Covid-19 is an uncomfortable situation and it's about time we start focusing on what is true and not what we would like to be true. The truth is that vaccines save lives. They always have. They always will. Politics can, and probably will, affect how we deliver the scientific tools to the public, and that seems to be an inescapable consequence of the type of system we live in.
All we, as health-care workers, and adults in general, can do is be examples for the children we leave behind to make this planet their home when we are long gone.
It's okay to be afraid during these unpredictable and unprecedented times. It's okay to be angry because of all the incorrect information that is making its way across the internet. It's also okay to be sceptical. But if we have a shot at possibly invoking an immune response within us all, due to the development of new vaccines, that will potentially save millions, then we should take that risk.
Yes, it might be a risk–- science never claimed to be perfect. Science can do only so much to help counter the thousands of years of human overpopulation and abuse that we have caused this planet. It's taken a pandemic to make us realise that we should all be making sacrifices. It all comes down to your philosophy on life.
I cannot force you to vaccinate and I will not. All I would like to do, as a mental health-care practitioner, is remind you that you are not alone. We're all questioning. We're all afraid. We're all trying our best to make the most informed decision. It's okay not to know what you'd do when the time comes to vaccinate. It's also okay to admit that you have no clue what's going on.
What you can do is try and stay up to date and do your own research. Dig deep and don't believe Facebook or instant messaging posts. Find resources and references for anything you read online. Look towards trusted scientists and doctors for evidence-based advice and tips.
Remember that everything comes with a risk. It's all about the risk-benefit ratio. Sometimes we have to take a risk to benefit us the most. If all the information bombarding your mind has become too much, it's also okay to just switch off. Take a break and take a step back. There's no need to let the chaos of the world affect your mental health too, because that also affects your body's immunity and will also affect how the vaccine works on your body.
A healthy body equals a healthy mind. A healthy mind also equals a healthy body. Make sure you're eating well, drinking lots of water, exercising regularly, taking all your chronic medications, practising mindfulness or other forms of meditative rituals, getting good quality sleep and just resting your mind without overactive ruminations about things that you cannot control. Spend time with loved ones and people who make you happy. Laugh and love. And if you cannot, it's okay to see a therapist or seek psychiatric help during this crisis.
Don't be afraid of the incorrect and misguided stigma associated with mental illness. Don't neglect your mental health. Everything we experience takes place within the mind – mental health should be at the forefront of everything we do. Please, take care of your mind, because mental health matters most.