DCZards wrote:It's very unlikely that 100% of Canadian docs are vaccinated. Just like the general population there are probably some docs who have health/medical reasons for not getting vaccinated...like bad reactions to other vaccines.
But the fact that 85-90% of the Canadian docs are vaccinated (which is also probably true of docs in the US) speaks volumes...and should send a message to those who fear the vaccines based on misinformation about the risks.
I hear you. I also feel like I should respond to that statement about fearing the vaccine. That's true for some, but I think for many, it's a complicated nest of issues.
For one, there is a general distrust of corporate-driven consensus, including that of pharmaceutical companies. Just in the last few decades, there have been many cases of drugs or vaccines being touted as safe and effective, only for people to find out years later that very real dangers were covered up or ignored. (Even considering well meaning doctors, bear in mind that there was a time when 99.9% of physicians refused to believe that washing their hands could save lives.)
Another part of the picture is that we cannot possibly know potential long term side effects at this time. In parallel, we have a fairly solid grasp on the statistical risk of covid based on age, health factors, and other key consideations. For many people, physicians or not, the choice is between a very low, known risk and a giant question mark.
Then there is the component where that has been high profile, highly public disinformation and wild policy swings coming out of the Federal government. There is a natural human response to question things that seem true, when the same source said things that definitely were not.
I do think there is an emotional fear component to all of this reasoning, but that's true of everyone involved. Some are afraid of what covid can do to them. Others, what covid can do to their loved ones. Some are afraid of what the vaccine might cause now, or years down the line. Some are afraid of an overbearing government, and how no crisis goes to waste. There's a lot of fear to be had, it's the number one product of the pandemic.
If you've read this far, thanks for reading my rambling thoughts. I'm not trying to change your mind, or anyone here. I'm just trying to add some context to your image of what people who think differently are actually thinking, so you can understand both the rational and the emotional drivers behind them.