Dr. Gerald Evans, the chair of the division of infectious diseases at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ont., is asked that question about single-dose vaccination and responds, “You’re going to be protected, even with a single dose, likely from getting a severe illness that would make you sick and put you in the hospital or maybe result in your death.”
Though he cautions that most of the data on the reduction of viral transmission is based on a two-dose regimen, there is now some first-dose data, especially from Israel and Britain—the latter of which began its own “first-dose-first” rollout much earlier than Canada did—which show big drops in hospitalizations and deaths, even after that first dose.
Right now, there are three interacting issues for those who have received their first doses to consider: the effectiveness of the vaccines themselves, the sharp increase in variants of concern (VOCs) and the better weather.
Dr. Evans’ final message is to hold on even after getting a single dose. He adds a single dose is like equating our upcoming vaccinated summer with the open water seen beyond the ice that still hugs the shores of many lakes and rivers in Canada: “You should still stick to your household, your bubble; wear your mask when you’re out in public and you’re out at a shop and store; and do all those good things that we’ve been doing now, unfortunately, for almost a year,” he says. “Until we get that second dose into lots of people. Because it’s when that happens that things get back to normal.”
Source: Macleans full article
