The vaccines | vaxxed boosted unvaxxed? New poll

[jojojo]

So I live in South Asia where the predominant vaccine is sinopharm (Chinese diplomacy/influence). My sister needs to travel to Germany for work next month and she’s been asked to take not just one but two doses of Pfizer by the German embassy.

Repeat; that’s two doses of sinopharm and two doses of Pfizer within the span of 7 months.

I sympathise. If we are going to use vaccine status as part of managing travel we do need a way to standardise these things to treat people fairly. It would be great if everyone could accept WHO approved as a baseline, but such are the problems about political influence over WHO a lot of countries haven't agreed to it. In fact even the covax program hasn't agreed to use the WHO list.

I've also had to have a two dose course of Pfizer (not just a booster), despite being fully vaxxed with Novavax as part of a clinical trial last year. Novavax passed its efficacy trial but couldn't ramp up production as planned and as such is still not approved by the MHRA, CDC or EMA. The UK and US recognise the trialists as vaccinated but Europe and most private companies don't.

There's a suggestion now that the definition of fully vaxxed will be three doses, which might be good for me (I've had 4!) if they accept the trial vaccine as part of it - but a guinea pig nightmare if they don't. A nightmare for those on the unapproved vaccine list trying to move as well. And that's before I get onto the waste of vaccine involved.

Meanwhile, I'll just assume it was worth it and made me invincible.

 

[Ixion]

Took me repeatedly trying from about 7am till 3pm to get a successful booster appointment booked on the site. Felt like it was just pot luck when it finally worked.

 

[Droid_Repairs]

If somebody has not been vaccinated for whatever reason, but fears the oncoming onslaught of Omicron, is there any benefit getting their first dose now?

 

[TheReligion]

If somebody has not been vaccinated for whatever reason, but fears the oncoming onslaught of Omicron, is there any benefit getting their first dose now?

Of course

 

[Bosws87]

If somebody has not been vaccinated for whatever reason, but fears the oncoming onslaught of Omicron, is there any benefit getting their first dose now?

Yes because the only reason they are doing another booster is because your active antibodies decrease over time 4-8 weeks so getting a first dose should be just as good as a booster for the short term solution they are attempting.

 

[jojojo]

If somebody has not been vaccinated for whatever reason, but fears the oncoming onslaught of Omicron, is there any benefit getting their first dose now?

Yep, it can prime the system ahead of the virus - which sounds like a bad thing but is actually good! It needs a week or two to do anything though, so it won't help at all initially - but if you can dodge the virus for a while longer then it will offer some help. Depending on where you live, you then want dose 2 as soon after as they allow.

 

[Droid_Repairs]

Yes because the only reason they are doing another booster is because your active antibodies decrease over time 4-8 weeks so getting a first dose should be just as good as a booster for the short term solution they are attempting.

Those were my thoughts too. He's a friend of mine with agoraphobia, he's resisted vaccine thus far as he hasn't left the house in 2 years.

 

[Droid_Repairs]

Yep, it can prime the system ahead of the virus - which sounds like a bad thing but is actually good! It needs a week or two to do anything though, so it won't help at all initially - but if you can dodge the virus for a while longer then it will offer some help. Depending on where you live, you then want dose 2 as soon after as they allow.

Thank you, if it turns out that Omicron will be as pervasive as reported, better to have some protection after two weeks, since by the end of January we could all be exposed to it.

 

[stw2022]

For the yet unboosted, I keep hearing two doses of AZ don't provide protection but is that just from symptomatic infection? Or is it zero protection from serious disease and death? Cos the latter would be pretty shit.

 

[FootballHQ]

Got a gig on Wednesday so trying to get a covid passport onto phone or email to print out.

Anyone got a clue what to do next when you put your mobile number in (for the 6 digit security code) and yet nothing is then sent?

Also had issues when I was trying to get one sent to email. Eventually got a code sent after fourth try and now it's just constantly directing me through to the mobile number query.

 

[TheReligion]

Got a gig on Wednesday so trying to get a covid passport onto phone or email to print out.

Anyone got a clue what to do next when you put your mobile number in (for the 6 digit security code) and yet nothing is then sent?

Also had issues when I was trying to get one sent to email. Eventually got a code sent after fourth try and now it's just constantly directing me through to the mobile number query.

I had to verify my personal details with my driving licence.

 

[Eyepopper]

There are walk-ins at the Etihad according to Twitter.

Anything to attract a crowd into the place

 

[golden_blunder]

Ireland are reducing the time from 2nd vax to booster to 3 months

 

[evil_geko]

I will wait for 8 months to pass for my Pfizer booster as I've read it would be more effective than much shorter period. January it is then.

 

[Wibble]

I will wait for 8 months to pass for my Pfizer booster as I've read it would be more effective than much shorter period. January it is then.

Longer gaps possibly make the third booster shot more effective but most studies show terrific results with a 5 or 6 month gap.

The reason that I'd go sooner rather than later is that waiting longer might have limited benefit for you and getting active antibodies in your bloodstream rather than relying on t-cells to do the hard lifting may save you from infection and almost certainly mean you have far less severe symptoms. Plus if you do get it you will pass it on far less.

In anendemic state we can probably rely on our t-cells with far less reliance on boosters but at the moment boosters help keep the lid on cases and reduce pressure on the health system as well as saving lives.

 

[evil_geko]

Longer gaps possibly make the third booster shot more effective but most studies show terrific results with a 5 or 6 month gap.

The reason that I'd go sooner rather than later is that waiting longer might have limited benefit for you and getting active antibodies in your bloodstream rather than relying on t-cells to do the hard lifting may save you from infection and almost certainly mean you have far less severe symptoms. Plus if you do get it you will pass it on far less.

In anendemic state we can probably rely on our t-cells with far less reliance on boosters but at the moment boosters help keep the lid on cases and reduce pressure on the health system as well as saving lives.

I am choosing 8 months because where I am at, the cases are in lows at the moment, we had peak some weeks ago and these days we had like 2 cases in two days in my city, add to that that I am always working from home and barely go out. If it was on the rise, I wouldn't wait for sure. My 6 months was mid November, so it's like one more month.

 

[Jacko21]

Heads-up, the booster rollout extends to people aged 18 to 29 from tomorrow, but just seen on Reddit that quite a few under-30s have already managed to start booking slots.

 

[Tomuś]

For the yet unboosted, I keep hearing two doses of AZ don't provide protection but is that just from symptomatic infection? Or is it zero protection from serious disease and death? Cos the latter would be pretty shit.

Nobody here has a clue mate.

 

[Zlatattack]

Nobody here has a clue mate.

For the yet unboosted, I keep hearing two doses of AZ don't provide protection but is that just from symptomatic infection? Or is it zero protection from serious disease and death? Cos the latter would be pretty shit.

Check this out... https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-59639973

Basically... the first 2 doses will protect you from being seriously ill, but as it's now a mutated version, the booster will increase the level of protection.

 

[Tomuś]

Check this out... https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-59639973

Basically... the first 2 doses will protect you from being seriously ill, but as it's now a mutated version, the booster will increase the level of protection.

It's a bit blurred this one. 'two doses enough not to be SERIOUSLY ill', 'booster increases the level of protection'. They should just order people to take the 'booster' and be done with.

 

[berbatrick]

Two doses of Pfizer/BioNTech’s Covid vaccine appear to have given 70% protection against hospitalisation in South Africa in recent weeks, according to a major real-world study on the potential impact of Omicron.

The study released by South Africa’s largest private health insurance administrator, Discovery Health, which co-led the study with the South African Medical Research Council.

It was based on more than 211,000 positive Covid test results from 15 November to 7 December, around 78,000 of which were attributed to Omicron.

It also found two Pfizer doses provide 33% protection against infection.

Spoiler

https://www.theguardian.com/world/l...084998b5483d0a#block-61b89e6b8f084998b5483d0a

 

[11101]

For the yet unboosted, I keep hearing two doses of AZ don't provide protection but is that just from symptomatic infection? Or is it zero protection from serious disease and death? Cos the latter would be pretty shit.

It's not known for absolute certain but everything points to it being the former, including the early data coming out of South Africa.

Very simply put infection and serious illness follow two different mechanisms. B cell antibodies are responsible for preventing infection and they do decline. T cells are responsible for preventing serious disease and we think they stick around a lot longer.

 

[Dan_F]

Heads-up, the booster rollout extends to people aged 18 to 29 from tomorrow, but just seen on Reddit that quite a few under-30s have already managed to start booking slots.

How is the system going to cope with that? Im not really sure about the benefits of 18 year olds taking up slots - especially with the use of technology needed to book.

Over 40’s only started a week ago and it seems like a free for all when actually, someone who’s 49 is in far more need of getting access to their booster (based on how long ago their second dose would have been, as well as general age concerns).

 

[Pexbo]

Just thinking about the UK’s booster roll out that Johnson announced on Sunday.

1. There is no way in hell they are going to be able to achieve it.
2. With how transmissible Omicron is, it almost doesn’t even matter if we do achieve it. When a disease is highly transmissible, it peaks very fast and very high before dropping off quickly too when it runs out of places to spread and this is likely to happen before anyone who currently doesn’t have their booster has had the chance to have their booster and enough time has passed for efficacy to rise

With that in mind it feels very much like a political move. They know full well we are likely to see a sharp peak followed by a sharp drop and they’re going to spend the following months pointing at the chart with a label of when they ramped up their booster program conveniently sitting alongside the downward slope.

 

[massi83]

Just thinking about the UK’s booster roll out that Johnson announced on Sunday.

1. There is no way in hell they are going to be able to achieve it.
2. With how transmissible Omicron is, it almost doesn’t even matter if we do achieve it. When a disease is highly transmissible, it peaks very fast and very high before dropping off quickly too when it runs out of places to spread and this is likely to happen before anyone who currently doesn’t have their booster has had the chance to have their booster and enough time has passed for efficacy to rise

With that in mind it feels very much like a political move. They know full well we are likely to see a sharp peak followed by a sharp drop and they’re going to spend the following months pointing at the chart with a label of when they ramped up their booster program conveniently sitting alongside the downward slope.

Millions of people will get in time for it to be helpful. And there is very little down-side to it anyway. It’s exactly what I would want Finland to do, but it seems we will be 2-3 weeks late for some reason.

 

[Balljy]

How is the system going to cope with that? Im not really sure about the benefits of 18 year olds taking up slots - especially with the use of technology needed to book.

Over 40’s only started a week ago and it seems like a free for all when actually, someone who’s 49 is in far more need of getting access to their booster (based on how long ago their second dose would have been, as well as general age concerns).

I'm thinking the way they've done it may be a mistake too. There are millions of over 40's who are at less than 6 months who have had a week to book and with no reserved slots for the age group (which was the obvious answer to solve that). They're now in a queue with 18 year olds and could be waiting until after Christmas.

On paper that's going to increase hospitalisation rates over Christmas surely?

 

[jojojo]

I'm thinking the way they've done it may be a mistake too. There are millions of over 40's who are at less than 6 months who have had a week to book and with no reserved slots for the age group (which was the obvious answer to solve that). They're now in a queue with 18 year olds and could be waiting until after Christmas.

On paper that's going to increase hospitalisation rates over Christmas surely?

I do think they messed up the timings. A clearer set of priorities would have helped. Some combination of months past second dose + age perhaps. As it was the combination of moving from 6 to 3 months and rolling down the age groups fast was going to create some messy results. Last week some walk-ins were turning away 50 year olds who were a week short of 6 months, this week it's 18+ and 3 months.

The other big deal though initially was that the whole campaign was supposed to run without disrupting GP services, and on a fixed price per jab. In consequence, we've still got some over 80s and housebound people, and even some carehomes unjabbed. Hopefully that's now happening despite the media focus on the walk-in centres etc.

That said we're now on the territory where a booster won't have you fully protected before Christmas. Once that magic milestone was crossed I think they decided that volume of jabs were what mattered. The more people boosted the more likely Omicron is to hit someone who won't get infected and won't pass it on - getting the young ones done isn't a bad move from that perspective.

Rollout looks like this right now:

Tweet

— Twitter API (@user) date

 

[Dan_F]

Weirdly, about 30 mins after my last post I had a text from my GP with a link and was able to book any slot in the next week at the surgery, via a site that was different to the regular NHS one.

I really hope they’ve already contacted everyone older in the area first and I’m not taking an important slot. I also wonder what that means for the day to day running of the surgery, as they are all listed as doctors administering it, rather than nurses.

 

[Lj82]

So I live in South Asia where the predominant vaccine is sinopharm (Chinese diplomacy/influence). My sister needs to travel to Germany for work next month and she’s been asked to take not just one but two doses of Pfizer by the German embassy.

Repeat; that’s two doses of sinopharm and two doses of Pfizer within the span of 7 months.

My friend did that too. Mainly because he was initially working overseas where only Sinopharm was available. When he returned to Singapore, he took the Pfizer shots here because the govt didn't recognise Sinopharm at that time and we have vaccines- differentiated measures. So he took it for convenience sake.

Another consideration he had was that a friend of his who also took Sinopharm went to do an antibody test and was shocked to find that he had zero antibodies. The concern over efficacy swung it for him

 

[Organic Potatoes]

The third Pfizer shot knocked me flat on my ass the following morning; I was actually a bit worried. But 30ish hours on and it’s easing up.

Based on what’s going on in my area and cancellations in sports leagues all over, I’m thankful I had the chance to get a booster.

 

[Charlie Foley]

Got my third shot tonight. 5 hours in and feeling ok.

 

[Kopral Jono]

My friend did that too. Mainly because he was initially working overseas where only Sinopharm was available. When he returned to Singapore, he took the Pfizer shots here because the govt didn't recognise Sinopharm at that time and we have vaccines- differentiated measures. So he took it for convenience sake.

Another consideration he had was that a friend of his who also took Sinopharm went to do an antibody test and was shocked to find that he had zero antibodies. The concern over efficacy swung it for him

This seems to be something of an issue when it comes to Sinopharm and Sinovac. I know two people who took two doses of Sinovac and their respective antibodies were close to zero. Fortunately my two shots of the same vaccine produced very good antibodies.

 

[Solius]

Just had my booster. 3x Pfizer gang.

 

[Mihai]

Just had my booster. 3x Pfizer gang.

Spoiler: 3x Pfizer gang

https://ifunny.co/picture/signature-look-of-superiority-Mz1TcJCP8?s=cl

 

[Lj82]

This seems to be something of an issue when it comes to Sinopharm and Sinovac. I know two people who took two doses of Sinovac and their respective antibodies were close to zero. Fortunately my two shots of the same vaccine produced very good antibodies.

Are you able to get your booster shot anytime soon?

 

[TheReligion]

Just had my booster. 3x Pfizer gang.

Same

How is everyone feeling?

@Charlie Foley

 

[Solius]

Same

How is everyone feeling?

@Charlie Foley

Fine so far! I'm volunteering at the animal centre tonight so hopefully it doesn't kick in whilst I'm there.

 

[Berbasbullet]

Fine so far! I'm volunteering at the animal centre tonight so hopefully it doesn't kick in whilst I'm there.

That’s class mate, what do you do there?

 

[Solius]

That’s class mate, what do you do there?

It's an out of hours thing I do every Wednesday til 10pm. We basically just make sure all the animals are alright for the night. So we check their food, water, litter trays and change if needed. We do washing up, laundry, etc.. and then spend the rest of the time checking on the dogs, spending time with the kittens to socialise them, bathing the tortoises, etc.. whatever needs doing really.

 

[Charlie Foley]

Same

How is everyone feeling?

@Charlie Foley

Grand, thanks. Walking the dogs, very slight ache on right arm and my HR might be a few beats higher than normal. Otherwise nothing. So far very similar to first dose