Myth: The pneumonia shot can prevent COVID-19 complications
Dr. Horovitz explains that it’s not that simple. “You are less likely to get bacterial pneumonia as a complication of viral pneumonia if you get a pneumonia shot.” However, if you’re 65 or older, a pneumonia shot is highly recommended.
Myth: A COVID-19 vaccine will be ready soon
According to Dr. Adirim, we still have to wait until the vaccine will be released. “Manufacturing a new vaccine is a very complicated process. We need to determine its safety because a potential vaccine could make things worse by turning on your immune system and worsening the infection,” she says.
It is a complex process that requires lab, animal, and human testing. “We won’t get back to normal until we have a safe and effective vaccine,” she added.
Myth: There’s nothing you can do
That’s false. Every little gesture one does can help others. For example, Gabrielle Armour, a mom of three in New York City, celebrated her 50th birthday by donating food to New York City’s health care workers on the front lines of this pandemic.
“It’s going great so far,” she says. “In three weeks, I’ve raised almost $10,000 from donations ranging from $5 to $1,000. We’ve delivered hundreds and hundreds of meals.”
Additionally, Barbara Commisso Beddia of Hawthorne, New York, felt hopeless during quarantine and decided to do something good to help others. “I saw a tutorial on YouTube on making masks and since I always sewed I figured I would volunteer to make masks,” she says.
“A local neighborhood site asked if someone would make masks so I decided to make masks for free and have them donated to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.”
