PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The difference between this time last year and now is 458 million doses of the coronavirus vaccine. Yet, many Americans are still afraid of COVID-19 — either getting it, spreading it or worse.
KYW Newsradio In Depth’s final special of 2021, “Facts Over Fear,” which is presented by Independence Blue Cross, breaks down some common misconceptions around COVID-19 fears with KYW Newsradio medical editor Dr. Brian McDonough.
Listen to the full interview in the player below:
If you are fully vaccinated — booster included — McDonough said there’s no need for overzealous fear. Fully vaccinated people can still get sick, but their symptoms will likely be very mild.
“You’re not going to end up in the hospital, the ICU and worse,” said McDonough. “And I think that is the first thing you should be optimistic about.
“The second thing is, think about what’s been done in the last year from the standpoint of medicine and the developments — I’ve never seen anything like it in my life. So that’s going to continue.”
As for unvaccinated people, the odds are against them, he said. After a year of the vaccine being publicly available, McDonough said it’s important to still tame their apprehension for getting it.
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“What we need to do is try to reach those who have chosen not to get vaccinated and explain to them why this layer of protection is helpful,” he said. “That’s going to take some time, and hopefully we’ll make strides.
“But overall, we cannot sustain living like we have in the past year, as far as fear and concerns. It’s just not good for your overall health.”
A common explanation among people choosing not to get vaccinated is that they already had COVID-19, or they know vaccinated people who still got the virus. McDonough said that’s simply not enough of a reason.
“I’ve seen it thousands of times: ‘The vaccines aren’t working because people have the vaccine and they get COVID.’ Well, that never was the promise of the vaccines,” he said. “The only way you’d have a vaccine that doesn’t give you COVID is if everybody got the vaccine, then nobody would get COVID. But until that happens, there’s going to be cases. The promise of the vaccines was you’re not going to get very sick and end up in the hospitals, and that’s what we’re seeing.”
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McDonough believes we need to put COVID-19 in the same basket as other fearful severe diseases or injuries — cancer, heart disease, car accidents.
“We have to kind of normalize it,” he said, “and take the common-sense precautions. So just like you want to quit smoking, or you don’t want to drink to excess, or you don’t want to drive fast on the road, or you want to wear a seatbelt, you should get your vaccine.
“If you do that and accept it’s a part of our life — whether we like it or not — it can be part of a healthy, happy life. And we won’t have those numbers like we’ve had, [which] really have led to a bit of PTSD for all of us.”
For more, listen to KYW Newsradio In Depth’s “Facts Over Fear” special in the player below.