1 Photo
Though it may seem as if the corner has been turned on COVID-19, with the delta variant on the rise, community leaders and medical experts are continuing to stress the importance of the COVID-19 vaccine to limit the spread of the virus.
To discuss the COVID-19 vaccine, answer questions from community members, and address common misconceptions about the vaccine, The Express News Group will be hosting a virtual Express Sessions event, titled “Getting the Facts on the COVID Vaccine” on Thursday, August 12, at 10 a.m. The discussion will be held via Zoom, and registration is required to attend the free event.
The panel will feature Dr. Sharon Nachman, chief of the Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases at Stony Brook University Hospital, Dr. Fredric Weinbaum, chief medical officer at Stony Brook Southampton Hospital, Southampton Village Mayor Jesse Warren, Bonnie Cannon, executive director of the Bridgehampton Child Care and Recreational Center, Minerva Perez, executive director of Organización Latino-Americana (OLA) Long Island and East Hampton Town Supervisor Peter Van Scoyoc.
The goal of the discussion is to give those who are unvaccinated the chance to ask questions in a judgment free environment, hear from medical experts, and get clear reliable answers on which they can base their important decision affecting both individual and community health.
“Correct and accurate information is the key to help keep children and adults safe,” Dr. Nachman said. “We hope to help shed light on the true information about the COVID delta variant and dispel myths about vaccines.”
Dr. Nachman said that while there are some who are simply not willing to receive a vaccine under any circumstance, there are many more who are hesitant and deserve to get accurate information and reliable answers to their questions.
“I really believe that most people want to do what is right for their family, friends, and their community,” she said. “Being informed is the best way to accomplish that goal.”
With the delta variant on the rise, Dr. Weinbaum said it’s important that people get vaccinated in order to limit the spread of the new, highly transmissible variant. The delta variant, he said, is somewhere between three and five times as transmissible as the initial virus, and the chance of getting the disease in a shorter period of time of exposure is much higher.
“There are people that feel, for various reasons, that getting the vaccine is scary,” Dr. Weinbaum continued. “Getting a shot might hurt, you might have some side effects, but what I can tell you is that if you don’t get vaccinated, the delta variant is coming, and you will get the disease. But if we can get all eligible people vaccinated, we’ll be in a position where we can all enjoy life a lot more.”
For a registration link to this event, visit Virtualsessions0812.eventbrite.com.
