The questions are endless. The speculation and unadulterated bullshit circulating on social media is unprecedented and all across America, daily deaths and infection rates from Covid keep rising. As we apparently no longer “trust science”, thanks to amateurs speculating online, legions of health and wellness quacks, and rogue doctors who’ve lost touch with reality, we need to look to other forms of support for the common vaccine. We need to examine what we know about vaccines and apply a little common sense.

1. Evidence-based proof

Frontline healthcare workers are currently receiving the Covid Pfizer vaccine across all American towns and cities. It’s a common-sense decision to first protect those that protect us. Dead doctors and nurses are of little use in a pandemic and they’ve been dying in record numbers. This strategy has also provided excellent proof-of-use for the vaccine doubters, which number, according to some research, around 50% of the American population.

Look ma, no hands. It’s an absolute and undeniable show of faith by the medical community in the science, research, and trials Pfizer has undertaken with their vaccine. Every vaccination photo taken, every vaccination video posted, helps strengthen the message across social media.

The Covid Vaccine is SAFE. Look, I’ve just been vaccinated with it.

Make no mistake, vaccines are at war with the anti-vaxers. The fact that these groups and individuals are publically excommunicated from their professions makes little difference. It is the digital age. People wear their shame like a badge of honor, they pin it to their profiles, and the public lap it up. 

The only way to counter this sea of misinformation is to drown it out. To help build a wave of evidence-based proof, Medika Life and MOBILIZE™ Health is publicizing doctors, nurses, and frontline healthcare staff who get vaccinated under the tag #vaccinechallenge. You can find their images and videos on dedicated pages across our site and on our social media feeds.

You can join us, if you’re one of those brave frontline members, by adding your vaccination and voice to the project and help us build the hashtag. Follow the links below to do just that.

For adding a video or to view the latest videos, follow this link.

For adding photos or to view the latest shots, follow this link.

2. Consulting the numbers for evidence

Vaccines have been around for a while. They are undoubtedly the most administered medication across the globe. More vaccines are produced and used than any other form of medication. Think for a second how every child born will receive a whole course of vaccinations before they turn 2. In the last few decades, we have used hundreds of billions of vaccines. Billions, not millions.

These numbers tell us a few things we don’t need a science degree to figure out. I’ll list the obvious first and then we can examine each point below.

• Vaccines are one of the primary sources of income for pharmaceutical companies. Can’t argue this right? Number one seller = number one earner.
• Every medication has a few people that are going to react badly to it, some fatally. Our huge variances as humans make this unavoidable. We are unique and this causes issues with medicines. What works for me may potentially kill you. No other drug has been more exposed to this risk than vaccines.
• We know more about human responses to vaccines than any other drug. Why? Well, again, most used drug.
• You, yes you, were vaccinated repeatedly as a child and possibly as an adult? The fact you are able to complain and bitch about vaccine safety is a pretty clear indicator you survived. Repeatedly.

Now let’s examine these logic-based statements about global vaccine usage over the last few decades.

Big Pharma getting it right

Noe one can afford a faulty product distributed globally, particularly if that product could prove fatal. Pharma companies are no different and doing anything to threaten potential vaccine lines by releasing a dangerous vaccine is completely counterintuitive to running a successful business. It is the equivalent of selling a rifle with the barrel welded closed. Pointless and something only an idiot would consider. Pharmaceutical companies are not idiots.

DO NOT CONFUSE TRIALS with approved vaccines. Yes, there is a questionable ethic behind how some pharma companies test and trial their vaccines and other drugs. Denying this fact is counterproductive to rebuilding trust. Trials are mandatory to ascertain if a drug is safe. Sometimes things go spectacularly wrong. it happens. 

This is not however a discussion on the ethics of large pharma. It is about the safety of products that have successfully passed this trial phase. Approved vaccines that make it into the arm of almost every human on the planet. Poisoning your customers is something any company would rather avoid, particularly if you are dependent on them for more business. If you disagree with this point then I’d recommend you avoid going into business.

The luck of the draw

Every anti-vaxer has a list of websites that highlight alleged death and disease they associate with vaccines. Much of their data and evidence is highly questionable but as I said earlier, we aren’t here to bandy science about. We are here to establish safety by using common sense and logic.

Every vaccine has a properly trialed and established risk of use. For every million people, for argument sake, that take the vaccine, 2 will develop disease x, 6 will develop disease y and 10 might drop down dead from an allergic reaction. These are known, documented, and acceptable risks for this and other medications. 

There are also other risks that are highlighted as use expands over a period of time. The more people we expose, the more potential for little known reactions to become evident. If these adverse reactions exceed what is deemed acceptable by regulating agencies (the Food and Drug administration for instance) then the drug or vaccine is recalled. 

This almost never happens with vaccines as they are more rigorously tested than other forms of medicine. They are, therefore, far safer. If you happen to react badly to a vaccine, then you shouldn’t play cards, as you’ve been unlucky enough to have drawn that one in a million short straw. Keep in mind, there is no way of avoiding this. Somewhere, someone is going to react. That is a fact, but the odds are massively in your favor that it won’t be you.

You’re walking, talking proof that vaccines work

No small part of the reason you’ve survived into adulthood is the vaccine. Your body is riddled with a variety of different ones, as are the bodies of most other adults. The aggressive vaccination of babies and young children has saved millions of lives globally and virtually eradicated diseases that previously could very well have cut your life short.

For 99.9% of the world’s population, vaccines have been lifesaving. FACT. Why do you think diseases like polio, mumps, measles, and a host of other nasty bugs no longer bother us? Vaccines. Why do you think these diseases are again beginning to emerge in certain states? It’s because anti-vaxers refuse to have their children vaccinated. If you think this makes no difference to you, then you better think again.

How anti-vaxers threaten your life

Let’s take a little stroll down the path of not vaccinating children and see where it leads. Stay with me, as you had better believe it isn’t simply their children these groups are exposing to risk, but you as well. Your life could be forfeit simply because of misinformation and unscrupulous agents exploiting people for profit.

Adults are far more susceptible to serious complications from childhood diseases. Mumps in an adult can be life-threatening and leave you sterile. Not a problem, you say as the mumps virus is virtually extinct. 

Think again. Thanks to anti-vaxers, since 2006 the disease is back and thriving in the US. Many of those infected in these new outbreaks are fully vaccinated adults. Viruses mutate over time and if we allow new strains of old diseases to gain a foothold again in our societies, we face a massive health crisis. 

Secondary infections from catching these diseases are treated with antibiotics. Increased use of our limited range of antibiotics is leading to resistant strains of bacteria that pay no attention to antibiotics. Strains that you may catch and that may kill you. Resistant means what it says. We have no defense against these bacteria. 

So now you know. Doubt me if you like, but I can promise you now that the scenario outlined above is almost a best-case scenario if we continue to ignore simple logic and common sense. The choice is yours. Use logic to overcome the idiocy and disinformation littering the internet. Would governments risk killing off all their frontline medical staff by exposing them to a dangerous vaccine?

Vaccines work, they are 99.9% safe and we need to continue vaccinating ourselves and our children to allow science the time to develop new and novel ways of combatting viruses and new bacterial strains. 

Please vaccinate. Covid kills and if you are afraid of the vaccine and developing an allergic reaction, think of this. For fifteen minutes after you’ve been immunized, you will be in the company of trained medical personal. People who know how to deal with allergic reactions and who can potentially save your life. 

Avoid vaccination and you’re on your own with Covid. Covid may very well not kill you, but the odds are much, much higher of a covid infection putting you in an early grave, than you being killed by a vaccine. If I were a betting man, I’d pick the vaccine, every time.

The post Proving Vaccine Safety Without Relying on Science appeared first on Medika Life.

If you want your arm all over social media, reach out to us via email at vaccinechallenge@medika.life and we’ll make you famous (sort of). The #vaccinechallenge is all about highlighting the safety of the covid vaccine and restoring faith in the vaccination process. Your voices and contributions make a massive difference, don’t underestimate their importance. We’d also like to add that no elves were injured in the construction of this page.

So without further ado, welcome to our gallery of medical warriors without whom we’d be lost.

Dr. Julie Grimes, OBGYN, Austin, Texas

I am doing this because I want 2021 to be the year of the hug! So thankful for science and cooperation to make this happen for all of us

Jessica McNeills, Certified Nurse Midwife, Parkland Hospital, Dallas, Texas

Thankful to have access to healthcare options that can protect my life and others, and hopeful for the future

Veronica Oviedo, Labor and Delivery Nurse, Baylor Scott and White, Irving, Texas

I am proud to be a frontline worker and make decisions to improve/save lives #thankful

Dr. Andrea Arguello, OBGYN, MacArthur Medical Center, Grapevine, Texas

Have never been so excited to get one of these! Sleeping a little more soundly tonight knowing my daughter, family and patients are a little safer.

Hujefa Vora, Internal Medicine, Arlington, Texas

Overwhelmed. Exhausted. Fatigued. These are the emotions that have defined our existence on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic over the last 9 months. We have watched helplessly as many of our patients and loved ones have slipped away. We have held the hands of patients who have passed on in respiratory isolation, their loved ones on the phone and miles away. But I have seen joy when the infection overwhelms, and the body and spirit fight on, conquering the virus and returning our patients to health. We have seen families reunited after long battles in the hospital or at home in quarantine. We have seen hope. We have known Love. I have seen the fantastic power of the human spirit. I have seen God’s love and the power of prayer. There were moments when I felt that I could no longer fight for myself or anyone else, when the exhaustion would creep in and leave me battered, bruised, and almost beaten. But we are physicians. And we work with amazing powerful nurses, medical assistants, medical techs, administrators, therapists. So I saw unexpected acts of bravery that I may never see again from my colleagues and friends. I saw us fight an unknown adversary. Courage and honor as we wrapped our patients in an armor of hope. I have seen hands that are raw from washing and sanitizing and wringing, but there was never any giving up or giving in. And today, at the hospital where I have seen and experienced all of this, there was a moment where my hope was recovered, where I became recharged and ready to step back onto the battleground. I saw the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel, the sun peaking over the horizon at the end of a cold dark night. The promise of a new day. The vaccine. I want to thank all of my colleagues and compatriots who have shared this year with me and my family, and my staff without whom none of this is possible. We have shown that together, we are stronger, and we will overcome…

Sarah Vignali, RN, Fort Worth, Texas

Moritz Bartels, OBGYN, Tacoma, Washington

The beginning of the end of the pandemic. I’m so grateful to be able o do this

Dr. Ethan Nguyen, Anesthesiologist, Texas Health Resources, Euless, Texas

Hopefully this is the beginning to the end of the pandemic. So grateful to get it.

Elf on a shelf, LaborUnit, Bayer Scott and White, Irving, Texas

As per Santa’s directive, I’m safe to wrap presents. Anyone missing a syringe?

Dr. Danielle LeBlanc, Plastic Surgeon, Fort Worth, Texas

So grateful to get my first round of Covid-19 vaccine today

Judy Busch, Labor & Delivery Nurse, Baylor Scott and White, Irving, Texas

Taking care of me so I can take care of you

Jennifer Willoughby, Surgery Technician, Texas Health Resources

Round 1 of my vaccine…here’s to the beginning of the end of this awful pandemic!

Dr. Mitch Carroll, Geriatrician Dallas, Texas.

As a Geriatrician, I am proud to get the Covid-19 vaccine today. This step helps keep my family and I safe and allows me to reduce the risk of transmitting the virus to my high-risk patients. I trust the science!

Tracy Speight, OBGYN, Health Central Women’s Care, Dallas, Texas

It’s a better day today!

Jay Patel, Interventional Radiologist, Baylor Scott and White, Irving, Texas

Just got the #covid vaccine and it feels like a new chapter has begun.

Dr. Julian Escobar, Fertility Physician, Irving Texas

COVID vaccinated. What else would you want more in 2020 when you interact with dozens of people daily? Thank you, Scientists. Thank you, Virologists. Thank you, Immunologists. Thank you Health Care.

Sarah Abbott Chang, Internal Medicine Physician, Baylor University Medical Center, Dallas, Texas

Here’s to hope – Team Vaccine!

Dr. Naomi Levy, Pediatrician, Memorial Herman, Houston, Texas

Felt a mixture of overwhelming relief, joy, hopefulness, gratitude, and awe as I received my first Covid vaccine today

Carissa Brown, RN, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago

Best Christmas present ever – thanks Science. Covid does not care who you are. It does not care where you live. how old you are or who you voted for. Covid does not care if you think it is real or not. With Covid you may have a mild cold for a few days, you may struggle with a loss of smell or taste for months; you may die. I have seen friends, family, and coworkers on all ends of this spectrum over the last several months, which is why I feel so lucky to be able to receive this vaccine. As healthcare workers, we will sleep a little easier knowing our patients and those we love are safer due to these advancements.

April Wilson Bleich, Maternal Fetal Medicine, Fort Worth, Texas

Got my shot today. Thankful for modern medicine and all the researchers that made this possible. One step closer to beating this sucker.

Dr. Greg Tichenor, ER Physician, Texas Health Resources, Euless, Texas

I am so thankful I was able to get my first dose of the Covid Vaccine Wednesday. This week, two of the patients I’ve admitted for Covid-19 have died and I attended (via live streaming) the funeral of a co-worker who died of Covid. Special thanks to my hospital system, Texas Health Resources, and the whole staff at Texas Health HEB for doing everything they can to protect staff.

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