One of Sherika Harris greatest wishes is for her only child, Rafael Lee, to have a normal life. However, a rare medical condition called tibial hemimelia (TH) is standing in his way.
As a result, Harris is seeking the public s assistance to raise the estimated US$250,000 (approximately J$35.6 million) needed to do corrective surgery in the United States. He is my first and only child and I just want him to live a normal life like any five-year-old, Harris said.
TH, also known as tibial deficiency, is a condition in which a child is born with a tibia that is shorter than normal or missing altogether. This creates a difference in the length of the child s legs. The condition is extremely rare, occurring in only about one out of every one million births.
A week ago, we told the Government that in-between planning for the logistical roll-out of the COVID-19 vaccine, it had to engage in a robust campaign to convince Jamaicans of the efficacy and safety of the drug. For the epidemiologists and other health professionals preparing for the event are challenged, not only by the understandable fear many people have for a new product, but also an array of conspiracy theorists and anti-vaxxers with dubious claims about the safety of the vaccine and the motives behind its development.
That advice is worth repeating and must be taken to heart by the administration. A report by this newspaper on Monday made that clear. Even doctors and nurses, as well as non-medical front-line staff at health institutions, are sceptical about taking the vaccine when one becomes available to Jamaicans. That will be some time in the first quarter of next year.
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As the Holness administration fine-tunes plans for the roll-out of the coronavirus vaccine in April 2021, it is emerging that the Ministry of Health and Wellness might be facing anti-vaxxer pushback from front-line staff who are one of the key groups first to be inoculated.
Front-line staff might complicate what could be a logistical nightmare for the Government as doctors, nurses, porters, guards, and others in the hospital and health centre network interact with patients and present the greatest threat as transmitters or victims of viral outbreak.
The cool reception to the vaccine is not unique to Jamaica as suspicion and fear have been reported in developed countries that are much further ahead with the despatch of what could be a game-changer exactly one year after COVID-19 emerged in China.
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