Rolling out the Vaccine: Athenian Employees and Bay Area Residents Become Immunized

Photo Credit: Shutterstock.com/BaLL LunLa

By Noelle Woodward

As COVID-19 vaccines have begun to be consistently distributed in the surrounding community, many local Bay Area residents and Athenian faculty are left asking when they will receive the vaccine themselves, and how it will affect current safety protocols. 

California counties have begun the transition from phase 1A, which includes vaccinating health care workers and nursing home residents, to phase 1B. In addition to residents 65 and over, as well as certain essential workers and first responders, educators are now amongst those that are eligible to receive the vaccine.

While this means many Athenian faculty and teachers have begun to receive vaccinations already, the wait for students to be vaccinated will last at least through Summer 2021, likely causing current safety protocols to remain in place throughout the extent of the school year. 

For the Athenian school, this means continued use of “five principal areas: distancing, personal hygiene, cleaning and disinfection, medical screening, and ventilation assessment,” said Madeleine Rebullida, an industrial hygienist and health and safety consultant for the Athenian school. 

And while some risks may begin to alleviate as vaccinations are distributed, the most important COVID-19 dangers to combat include, “people being unmasked eating indoors, having unsupportive ventilation, or mechanical ventilation, [and] people wearing their mask down below their nose,” said Rebullida. However, these risks can be easily avoided through masking, social distancing, and proper ventilation.

Until the state reaches herd immunity, (vaccinations for around 70-80 percent of the population), many of these guidelines, such as mask-wearing and social distancing, will remain in place throughout the state of California, as well. 

As well as state guidelines, numerous individuals experience the same desires to continue safety protocols even after vaccination as well. One participant in the Pfizer stage 3 vaccination trial, Jamie Jefferson, shared her hesitations: “I felt a huge amount of relief when I got the second vaccine. I felt like we were turning a corner. But I haven't changed my behavior at all. You get used to being a certain way and having certain fears it's sort of hard to [change that now]. So even though it felt really good psychologically I don't feel fully protected yet.”

Although both the Pfizer and Moderna trials yielded promising 95 percent effectivity results, the dividing line between implementing and ceasing safety guidelines in response to immunity levels is still a murky one, with many experts still unsure when and how to effectively transition into a post-COVID-19 life.