The Progressive Democratic Patriots (PDP) says it’s giving its supporters the information they need to make an informed decision about the COVID-19 vaccine.
The party’s area representative for Goodwood/Belle Garden West and alternative Secretary of Health Dr Faith B Yisrael said Tobago has “a proud history of taking vaccines.”
She noted that for decades people have taken their babies to be vaccinated against diseases like polio, measles and mumps.
“The reason we have not heard of anybody getting these diseases is that we have vaccinated our children against the diseases.”
Speaking on Tobago Channel 5’s Rise and Shine yesterday, Assemblyman B Yisrael was candid about taking the vaccine.
She told the show’s host Deryck Brathwaite (Brother B), she called the Tobago Regional Health Authority to make an appointment.
After getting one, she went to the Roxborough Health Centre, where she filled out the form and got the first shot of the two-dose vaccine.
She described the healthcare professionals as “amazing.”
“I got the shot. I was fine on Wednesday (the day of the injection). By the night, I started to get a bit of a headache. I took Panadol. On Thursday, let me be honest Brother B, I felt like I had been hit by a truck.”
She said she had aches and pains until Saturday.
B Yisrael, who has a master’s degree and doctorate in public health, said she was sharing her experience to prevent people from panicking if they have similar symptoms.
“I was actually happy about these symptoms, my layman’s proof that the vaccines were working the way they should. Remember, the vaccine is supposed to let your body mimic the response as if you have the flu.”
Dispelling what she described as a common myth about the vaccine, the assemblyman said it does not contain COVID-19. She said when vaccinations began decades ago, some viruses were given in them.
“We are no longer doing that, so when you hear people talk about if you get the COVID-19 vaccine, they are giving you COVID, no, that is not true.
“They (health officials) now have the specific information about what our immune system needs to do about the virus to then make antibodies to fight against it so we have the blessing of technology that has been able to speed up learning about the virus.”
She warned that getting one dose of the two-dose vaccine does not offer the required immunity. She said even after getting the vaccine people must continue following COVID protocols.
“Don’t do what the Prime Minister said about ... the scene,” B Yisrael said.