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A group of Oregon-based health professionals is calling on all community members to get vaccinated against COVID-19 as the number of infections continues to rise nationwide, saying doctors “cannot not continue to wage this fight without your help “.
“It’s not just about you and your healthy immune system. This is for the greater good of the community, ”added the group.
Eugene Emergency Physicians, made up of 50 emergency physicians and medical assistants, wrote a letter to members of the Oregon community imploring unvaccinated people to get vaccinated, citing data showing that the vast majority of COVID-19 hospital patients are not vaccinated.
“We know that many of you will read this letter and have information from a variety of sources that you feel supports the choice not to vaccinate yourself or your family. We urge you to take a moment and consider the impacts of your decisions on the community as a whole, ”the medical professionals wrote.
“These vaccines are safe and effective,” they added.
Doctors said on Wednesday more than 96% of the 1,037 COVID-19 patients hospitalized at PeaceHealth Oregon medical centers were unvaccinated.
The jarring numbers come amid a nationwide surge in COVID-19 cases largely due to the spread of the highly infectious delta variant, which has emerged in the United States as the dominant strain.
Health professionals have noted that while it is possible for those vaccinated to contract COVID-19, infections that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have called “breakthrough cases,” “it is clear that the risks of ‘hospitalization or death is exponentially lower “for those who have been vaccinated.
The letter was written days before the Food and Drug Administration granted full approval of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine on Monday, a much-anticipated move that many believe will lead to an increase in inoculations nationwide. .
The Pfizer vaccine is the first COVID-19 vaccine to receive full approval.
Medical professionals have painted a picture of what appears to be a strained hospital system amid the surge in COVID-19 cases, writing that they are “rapidly losing the ability to meet all the needs of the community.”
“We are running out of hospital beds in our state. We may soon be unable to adequately manage patients requiring surgery for other ailments or to treat medical conditions unrelated to COVID-19, ”they added.
They also highlighted the disastrous impact of the virus on those who test positive, writing, “This is NOT a bad cold. It is NOT a bad flu. It hurts. It prevents people from sleeping at night because of the pain.
“You can be very healthy and have a strong immune system. You can feel that you will be safe. We have treated and admitted many patients who have had this thought, ”wrote the medical professionals.
“Yes, some people are lucky and have milder cases, but is that a risk you really want to take for yourself or your parents or children? We urge you to consider your circle of family and friends, ”they added.
The letter also spoke of the importance of wearing masks as a way to curb the spread of the virus during the current peak, writing: “We cannot beat this disease without increasing the number of vaccinations, and we cannot control the spread. without masks. “
“Vaccines and masks work. If you want your children to go back to school in person, please have them vaccinated. If you want your children not to be masked at school, please vaccinate them. If you want to go to the store without a mask, please vaccinate, ”he added.
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