As COVID-19 continues to linger and virus variants are threatening a new surge of infections, we are working quickly to get as many people as possible vaccinated in order to stop the spread.
The COVID-19 vaccines have been shown to be safe and efficacious - and largely prevent hospitalizations and deaths from the virus.
Protecting yourself with the COVID-19 vaccine will help us get back to normal life. Who’s ready for fans at sporting events?
Giles County VOICES
"I knew the seriousness of COVID-19 and we’re like everybody else. We tend to think oh this is not going to happen to me. But it did happen to me. And my family. Once it does, your life is forever changed. Especially with the loss of my dad.
Director of Environmental & Nutritional Services at Southern Tennessee Regional Hospital
"My grandmother was hospitalized and almost comatose. It’s very scary and very real. That’s why I got vaccinated."
MMC Sophomore, Upperman Hall RA
"I feel like the vaccine is a step toward having a normal life again."
MMC Student
"I’m getting my vaccine because I want to see my family, get sports back to the way they were, and have a better social life at school."
MMC Junior
"One of the biggest things to me is returning our community and school to some sort of normalcy, as well as keeping everyone around me safe."
MMC Junior, SGA, Cross Country
"I miss all the activities we had, when we could build a community without sitting 6 feet apart or wearing masks."
MMC Sophomore
YOUR COVID-19 VACCINE QUESTIONS
Getting immunized against COVID-19 will keep most people from getting sick. Even in a rare case where one does catch the virus, a vaccine will likely prevent you from becoming seriously ill. Protecting yourself also protects the people around you, like those at increased risk of severe illness from COVID-19 or those who can’t get vaccinated — like infants, children, or people with weakened immune systems from things like chemotherapy for cancer.
Yes. Researchers began developing vaccines for COVID-19 in January 2020, based on decades of understanding immune response and how vaccines work. Based on the results, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized two vaccines for public use in December 2020. The vaccines met the agency’s rigorous and science based standards for quality, safety, and effectiveness.
The truth is that the COVID-19 vaccine encourages the body to create copies of the spike protein found on the coronavirus’s surface. This “teaches” the body’s immune system to fight the virus that has that specific spike protein on it.
Confusion arose when a false report surfaced on social media, saying that the spike protein on this coronavirus was the same as another spike protein called syncitin-1 that is involved in the growth and attachment of the placenta during pregnancy. The false report said that getting the COVID-19 vaccine would cause a woman’s body to fight this different spike protein and affect her fertility. The two spike proteins are completely different and distinct, and getting the COVID-19 vaccine will not affect the fertility of women who are seeking to become pregnant, including through in vitro fertilization methods. During the Pfizer vaccine tests, 23 women volunteers involved in the study became pregnant, and the only one who suffered a pregnancy loss had not received the actual vaccine, but a placebo.
Getting COVID-19, on the other hand, can have potentially serious impact on pregnancy and the mother’s health. Learn more about coronavirus and pregnancy. Johns Hopkins Medicine encourages women to reach out to their medical providers to discuss other questions they have about COVID-19 as it relates to fertility or pregnancy.
So you're vaccinated. Now what?
The sooner that more of us get the COVID-19 vaccine, the sooner we can get back to normal. So, get vaccinated! And tell your friends, family, and social media followers to join you! #ThisIsOurShotGiles
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