»Why We Should Get Vaccinated«

In Germany, you can choose from four approved vaccines: BioNTech & Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca or Johnson & Johnson. The Johnson & Johnson vaccine is just one jab, and so it takes even less time! A personal consultation, a vaccine in the upper arm and then waiting 15 minutes at the vaccination site for observation. Quicker than a grocery shop at nahkauf, right?

Even when we are showing solidarity in the community: Applauding nurses has become a special way of showing our appreciation for the valuable work they are doing in overcrowded intensive care units, but this applause doesn't actually do anything to change hospital capacities for patients with severe cases of the virus. Ending up in intensive care is a real risk for those who are unvaccinated. The more people who are fully vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2, the fewer people who will need to be treated for the virus in hospital, thus relieving the burden on our health system.

The global situation has changed: Hygiene and infection-prevention measures are here to stay with a focus on distancing, hygiene, mask and ventilation regulations (AHA+L).  It doesn’t really sound very romantic, but these measures are critical if we want to avoid another lockdown, and they are ultimately an important step towards returning to a new normality.

Over the past year, we have noticed that cultural institutions are so important in our everyday lives: Visiting an art exhibition, an evening at the theatre, singing along together at concerts. Through their creativity, artists and musicians have found ways to present their work to the public, despite the pandemic. But these alternatives cannot replace physically visiting venues together. So if live-streams, picnic concerts and remote events are to become the exception and not the rule in the arts and culture scene, each person who is vaccinated is helping to keep COVID-19 at bay and the pandemic under control. Soon we will be able to lie side by side in each other's arms, forgetting our worries for the moment, allowing music to rush through our bodies, being a part of a crowd and experiencing culture carefree as a part of the community.

It’s hard to remember the going to bars, pubs and restaurants without having to wear a mask, disinfect our hands and fill out a contact-tracing form. These rituals have become a regular part of every evening programme. If we want to move past this, the rate of new infections in a county or city must consistently remain below 35 cases per 100,000 inhabitants. Only then can we return to a new normality. According to the Robert Koch Institute, we can only achieve this if at least 85 percent of 12 to 59 year-olds are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. This is the only way to prevent the spread of SARS-CoV-2 infection and establish herd immunity.

The coronavirus pandemic has altered our going-out behaviour, but with each and every additional vaccinated person, we can start returning to pre-pandemic life!

When over 80 million people over the age of 12 living in Germany are offered the vaccination, this means that the approved vaccines have undergone standard EU testing procedures and meet the high European safety standards. During the coronavirus pandemic, this procedure moved quicker because all of the necessary steps took place in parallel instead of one at a time. The speed at which the vaccines were approved was unsettling for some, and caused them to be nervous about vaccination side-effects. But the risk of serious side-effects from the vaccine is just 0.02 percent—a much lower risk than with many other vaccines we have relied on for years.

Nearly two-thirds of all people living in Germany have received at least one dose of the vaccine against SARS-CoV-2. This is the best method of prevention: A new pandemic, long covid and severe cases of the virus can be avoided through vaccination. Because prevention is the best treatment. Whether Boomer, Millennial or Gen Z—we need to work together and each and every single vaccination counts. This is especially true for those who cannot be vaccinated for health reasons.

In Germany, we have freedom of opinion: This freedom, however, also includes the risk that convoluted misinformation and ideas can run rampant. False information feeds conspiracy narratives that go against proven science. Those who get vaccinated are supported by fact-based knowledge and are firmly setting themselves apart from the many myths that are being spread about the virus. 

Greetings from the sofa at home is so 2020. »When all this is over«, then we can travel. We could use a change of scenery—now more than ever. Because we don’t want 2022 to be yet again another year of staycations: balcony edition. Every vaccination helps us get closer. Many countries are allowing fully-vaccinated individuals to travel, and are waiving testing and quarantine requirements with valid proof of vaccination. This is allowed because the likelihood of fully-vaccinated individuals spreading the virus is significantly lower. The higher the vaccination rate, the more we will be able to rediscover Europe in all its splendour.