‘Vaccines save lives’ says Groote Schuur Hospital’s first vaccine recipient

Prof. Ivan Joubert, Head of the Critical Care Unit at Groote Schuur Hospital, became the first frontline healthcare worker at the hospital to receive the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine. His vaccine was administered by the hospital’s Head of the Clinical Unit, Prof. John Joska, on 17 February 2021. On the day, a total of 40 employees were vaccinated.

‘I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to be vaccinated, especially when I think of the vast numbers of extremely sick patients we have seen in our COVID-19 wards in recent months. I am definitely relieved, for myself, my family, my colleagues, and people at risk. Also, I am proud of how medical science has gotten to this point because vaccines save lives,’ said Prof. Joubert.

There is a lot of scientific evidence that the vaccination protects us against the coronavirus. Being vaccinated can save many of us from becoming very sick with the disease. Currently, there is a huge anticipation amongst frontline workers at Groote Schuur Hospital waiting to receive their vaccines.

‘As a healthcare worker, I have been working with COVID-19 positive patients since we admitted our first patient at Groote Schuur Hospital on 5 April 2020. We have subsequently looked after 450 ventilated COVID-19 patients. We have all been longing for the vaccine for ages, despite all the precautions we take every day to prevent us getting COVID-19 ourselves. This gives us an additional level of protection that provides great reassurance,’ said Prof. Joubert.

Prof. Joska said it is critical that accurate facts about the COVID-19 vaccines are circulated widely so that anyone can access the information needed to make an educated decision. ‘Speak to people who know or have had the vaccine. Think about other ways that you have benefitted from medical science, and try not be selective, by ruling out taking a vaccine.’

Healthcare workers can #UniteToVaccinateWC by registering to be vaccinated on the Electronic Vaccine Data System (EVDS) here: https://vaccine.enroll.health.gov.za/#/