Orthopedic surgeon and medical vlogger Dr. Antonio Webb has shared a video outlining his decision to get Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine, and documented the experience for his followers in the hopes that it will resolve any questions or concerns they may have around the prospect of getting the vaccine themselves when the time comes.
“I’ve looked at the literature, I’ve looked at the research and the clinical trials, these are randomized, controlled trials, which are the highest level trials, and I’ve decided to get it today,” he says,also stating that he has spoken to his peers in the medical community who have a more specialized knowledge of immunology and critical care, and their comments have only made him feel more confident about his decision.
Webb goes on to clarify how exactly hospitals decide who gets the vaccine and when, explaining that as a surgeon, he is in a tier where he is not directly exposed to COVID-19 patients in the same way that a critical care doctor would be, but that as somebody who works in a hospital he is at a higher level of risk than the general public.
Once his tier “opened up,” he adds that it was very simple and easy to schedule a vaccination, and is only complicated in the cases of individuals with certain allergies.
“It was just like any other vaccine,” he says, shortly after getting the first shot. “You have that little hesitation, you know, ‘will this hurt, will this be painful for me,’ but it felt like any other vaccine. I didn’t have any reactions so far. Right after the vaccine administration they make you go to this little area and they observe you for 15 to 30 minutes. They had signs of what to look out for, they had snacks in there, and everybody was spread out. I had to wait there to make sure there wasn’t any anaphylaxis or severe reaction… My arm is a little bit sore, but no other weird symptoms.”
Elsewhere in the video, Webb speaks about the inequality in access to healthcare that some communities face in the United States, in particular the African-American population and those living in poverty. Rather than saying one way or the other whether everybody should get the vaccine, he more diplomatically advocates for being able to have all of the relevant and necessary information when making that decision.
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