I got vaccinated because ...
Now that a vaccine against COVID-19 is available, everyone faces the question of whether to be vaccinated.
Getting vaccinated will help protect us all by prompting an antibody response without our becoming sick with COVID-19. The vaccine might keep us from getting COVID-19 or keep us from serious illness if infected. It may also help us prevent the spread of the virus to others.
Ten people explain why they got the shots:
“… if everyone wants to go back to a normal life, it’s important that everyone get this vaccine.”
- Suzanne Buck, Upstate University Hospital nurse and the third person at Upstate to receive the vaccine, on Dec. 15, 2020
“… as educators, we need to learn what is real, convey the facts and practice what we teach.”
- Lawrence Chin, MD, dean, College of Medicine, Upstate Medical University
“… nobody can predict how the virus will affect them; being prepared by being vaccinated puts some of that control back in your hands.”
- Robert Corona, DO, chief executive officer, Upstate University Hospital
“… doing the right thing now will mean we can have a better recovery, in every sense of the word.”
- Mantosh Dewan, MD, president, Upstate Medical University

“… this is the start of the end of so much stress and turmoil and awfulness that we’ve gone through this (past) year.”
- Christian Knutsen, MD, emergency physician, Upstate University Hospital
“… this marks the beginning of the end of a very painful time in our history. I want to instill public confidence that the vaccine is safe.”
- Sandra Lindsay, intensive care unit nurse working in Queens, New York, and the first person in America to receive the vaccine (outside of clinical trials) on Dec. 14, 2020
“… it is my duty. The vaccine will help your body be ready to fight against the virus, so I encourage people to get the vaccine.”
- Kenzo Mukendi, environmental services worker, Upstate University Hospital, and the first person at Upstate to receive the vaccine, on Dec. 15, 2020
“… I am over 60 years old, I am a cancer survivor and have medical concerns that place me at high risk for COVID complications.”
- Nancy Page, chief nursing officer, Upstate University Hospital
“… I trust the vaccine, even though it was developed quickly. We achieved a vaccine in one year because we had a decade-long head start working with mRNA technology, and developers took financial risks they don’t normally take. The FDA review process was very much the same.”
- Stephen Thomas, MD, chief of infectious disease at Upstate and the lead principal investigator for the Pfizer/BioNTech global phase 3 COVID-19 vaccine trial
“… getting the vaccine is not just about protecting myself but also about protecting vulnerable people around me, so that I do not get and inadvertently transmit the virus.”
- Amy Tucker, MD, chief medical officer, Upstate University Hospital

Upstate University Hospital CEO Robert Corona, DO, and nurse Jacqueline Roe moments after receiving the COVID-19 vaccine. (photos by Kathleen Paice Froio)
Read online at issuu.com
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