Professor Ofer Marin, the directory of Shaare Zedek Medical Center, told Arutz Sheva on Sunday that he has no doubts regarding the safety of any coronavirus vaccine being offered to the general public, and he also stressed the importance of vaccination, given that, as he asserted, the country is now in the grip of a “third wave” of the epidemic.
Prof. Marin himself has already been vaccinated, and, seeking to reassure, he said that “it’s just a pinprick lasting a second – you don’t feel a thing, not at the time, and not afterward either.”
He described the vaccination program as “extremely exciting and extremely significant. I, like many others, have been meticulous in social distancing and isolating myself as much as possible for a long time already, so on a personal level, this is a great development. As director of Shaare Zedek, as well, this is a wonderful moment.”
Nonetheless, Prof. Marin sounded a strong note of caution in stressing that the effects of the vaccination program will take some time to be felt. “The situation right now isn’t good,” he said. “Over the past few days, we’ve seen a significant increase in the number of very sick people in hospital, and we have had to deal with the distress of the staff members treating them. This is most definitely a third wave of the epidemic – I don’t know of any other way of referring to it. Infection levels are rising, and for us, as a hospital, the vaccine is the light at the end of the tunnel we’ve been waiting for, but it’s still going to take some time for us to experience that light. In the meantime, it’s important that people continue to take precautions, because things could become much worse if they don’t.”
When asked to give some idea of the timeframe for things to turn the corner, Prof. Marin suggested that it could take “another three to four months before that happens. A person who receives both doses of the vaccine, three weeks apart, won’t experience the full benefits until two to three weeks after the second dose. So, we’re talking about three to four months until millions of people have had both doses and have reached a significant level of immunity, before the full effects will be seen.”
Prof. Marin was insistent that people have nothing to worry about regarding the safety of the vaccine. “The vaccine that is being administered has passed extensive tests that established definitively that it is safe, period. Hundreds of thousands of people have already received this vaccine, and I absolutely encourage everyone here to follow suit. If people follow expert advice, I am very optimistic that by the coming Pesach, things will be back to normal – but it’s up to us to make that happen.”