State epidemiologist says vaccines still critical in preventing hospitalizations, deaths
State epidemiologist says vaccines still critical in preventing hospitalizations, deaths
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State epidemiologist says vaccines still critical in preventing hospitalizations, deaths
It has been three years since New Hampshire saw its first reported case of COVID-19.
On March 2, 2020, an employee at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center contracted the virus. One week later, everything changed, with students and many workers sent home in an effort to slow the spread of the virus.
Health experts now say COVID-19 isn’t going away, but a lot has been learned about how to manage and control the spread and limit the severity of the disease.
Since the pandemic began, there have been more than 376,000 cases of COVID-19 across New Hampshire.
“COVID-19 is still around,” said Dr. Benjamin Chan, the state epidemiologist. “We’re still seeing people hospitalized and treated for COVID-19 every day. We’re still seeing one to two people dying from COVID-19 infection every day.”
Chan said that when vaccines were first introduced, there was a high demand, but there has been less interest in booster doses.
Chan said vaccines are one of the first lines of defense for protecting yourself and others against COVID-19 and some of the serious complications that can come with it. He said boosters are still available and recommended.
“The core base of the vaccine is going to be the same, and I think those vaccines have been shown to be very safe and effective at preventing COVID-19, particularly severe outcomes, including hospitalizations and deaths,” Chan said.
He said the world will be dealing with the effects of the pandemic for some time.
“We’re seeing new issues emerge with chronic health conditions from COVID-19, so long-COVID symptoms,” Chan said. “There’s been connections between COVID-19 and other health problems like diabetes, for example. Those kinds of health impacts are going to be with us for months and years to come. Mental health issues, worker burnout.”
Chan said there should be ongoing discussions about how to better prepare for and respond to future health emergencies.
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