I seem to be drowning in covid, pandemic and vaccine information. I’m tired – until I imagine the alternative.

When the pandemic started and talk of creating a vaccine seemed a fantasy to me. We had not developed even one vaccine for coronaviruses, not SARS, not AIDS. I was not optimistic we’d do it this time, especially within a reasonable time frame. Having a choice of vaccines, let alone any vaccine was preposterous.

Jump forward just 12 months. Canada is awash in doses of four different vaccines. So now we have the luxury of options, not entirely at the individual level, but as a society.

First, who should get the doses first? Everybody has their own rationale for the best priority list. The creator of the plan usually includes themselves in the first priority. I can’t blame them with the issue often being life or death.

Should I get a vaccine? There is a high volume on both sides. Like pregnancy, you can’t be a little bit pregnant, nor a little bit vaccinated. The stereotypical Canadian approach of somewhere in the middle is often best but doesn’t work for this dilemma.

Which vaccine should I get? Currently, we don’t have that individual choice. Public health and government bodies are trying to look at the evidence that is never complete, similar to the Canadian needs, or thorough enough to address the reality. The devil is applying it to specific categories of people.

Here’s my approach.

I don’t give up trying to keep up. I accept that the information may be wrong, misleading, sound, or legitimately changing as more evidence is available. I am grateful that I have some choices. First, I have an option to receive or not receive the vaccine. That is an immense power to have. It is even more potent if you are making the decision for a minor.

I think all I can do read and listen. I usually look to the end of articles to check the source. What special knowledge, not just opinion, do they have that I don’t have? Why might this person be biased one way or the other? A bias doesn’t make them wrong or right, but it helps to better evaluate what they say.

So please give this a bit of a think. Don’t give up. You can do better. Try to understand what to do. The stakes are too high not to make these decisions.

At least, check out the Canadian Government Covid Website. Also, check out a lower-level government website as well.

I’ll repeat my most crucial sentence on this topic.

What special knowledge, not just opinion, do they have that I don’t have?

Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash

I’m curious about your thoughts. Please leave your comment.

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And my thanks to St. Albert Seniors Association: 780-459-0433 for making this Blog possible.

Glenn Walmsley

Volunteer Blogger: -for the curious of spirit

TheBlog@stalbertseniors.ca