Op-ed: We cheer vaccines for COVID-19 but shrug at others. Here's why we shouldn't.

Once the COVID-19 vaccine is actively distributed and widely received, those of us in the medical community will finally be able to take a collective sigh of relief because we see, day in and day out, how vaccines prevent illness and save lives.

December 22, 2020
Indy Star

SUMMARY

As a pharmacist, I believe in the power of medicine to improve the quality of life and I am acutely aware of the power vaccines have to save lives.

I’ve been asking myself: “What can we take away from this to ensure we are more prepared, educated and organized to beat the next unprecedented health crisis we face?”  My answer, unequivocally, is to utilize to the fullest the vaccines that are available now. Why wait until the next big outbreak hits? There are numerous vaccine-preventable, life-threatening diseases that we have the ability to protect ourselves against today, without the nail-biting waiting game we’re experiencing while anticipating access to the COVID-19 vaccine.

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