Why do the worlds seen by healthcare workers and the general public differ so much?

The medical front lines during the COVID-19 pandemic. Can you imagine the sight of patients in their 50s losing their lives one after another? The world we healthcare workers saw and the world the general public experienced were as different as if they were on separate planets. Some doctors would stay at the hospital, sleeping there to avoid infecting their families when they returned home. Then, the vaccine arrived amidst those tense days. Fierce arguments broke out on social media, and honestly, I felt like I was reaching a breaking point mentally. While I myself wavered, wondering 'what is true,' why do I continue to take a pro-vaccine stance? I will share with you the essence of 'scientific thinking' I learned through continuous fact-checking, and the reasons why I choose dialogue over confrontation, along with the raw experiences from the front lines.

Healthcare workers and the general public lived in different worlds

During the period when COVID-19 was prevalent, we healthcare workers and the general public were truly living in different worlds.

What we saw every day was a world where people in their 50s were losing their lives easily. Especially when the Delta variant was raging, the transmission routes were not fully understood, and because of the characteristic of being prone to severe illness, the medical front lines were a series of tensions.

Even after returning home, I couldn't let my guard down. To avoid infecting my family, I avoided contact as much as possible, kept my towels separate from theirs, and spent my days using paper towels. I heard that some of my colleagues didn't even go home and stayed at the hospital instead.

Inside and outside the hospital. Healthcare workers and the general public. Our lives were as different as if they were in another world.

The arrival of the vaccine changed the front lines

In the midst of this, a vaccine was developed.

Vaccination first proceeded for those aged 60 and over. At the same time, social activities were restricted, so it is hard to say clearly which had the effect. However, there is something I felt on the front lines. At that time,

On the other hand, people in their 50s, who could not get vaccinated and were the oldest among those engaging in social activities, continued to lose their lives. Witnessing that contrast, I felt, 'perhaps the vaccine is indeed working after all.'

After that, from the Omicron variant onwards, cases generally became milder. While the vaccine's infection prevention effect certainly declined, its effect in suppressing severe illness was recognized.

I have never once seen what is talked about on social media as 'turbo cancer.' At least in my clinical setting, I have not seen anyone who lost their life due to the vaccine.

But that is not 'science'

However, let me say something important here.

This is strictly 'my own personal experience.' It is not science.

To get as close to the truth as possible, individual experience alone is insufficient; statistical surveys are necessary. The results of those surveys and studies vary widely, and one should prioritize reliable research. There are some papers with questionable backgrounds. Reading reliable papers, the conclusion that vaccines are effective in suppressing severe illness is currently dominant.

In the world of science, it is actually rare for things to be clearly black and white. There are many ambiguities. That is precisely why we repeat verification and updates, gradually getting closer to the truth. I believe that is the essence of science.

I felt like my heart was breaking due to the confrontational structure on social media

I will be honest. Watching the vaccine controversy raging on social media was making me feel mentally unwell.

There was also a flame war between a doctor and a politician. The opinions of skeptics are amplified by social media filter bubbles, and I see them every single day.

I do not think either side is good or bad. There is a huge gap between what we medical professionals consider common sense and the ideas of the skeptics, and I myself am often shaken about what is correct.

That is precisely why I started doing fact-checking myself.

What I have seen through fact-checking

What I have learned by continuing to fact-check.

At the very least, the posts by those inciting anti-vaccine sentiment, while containing some truths, were mostly exaggerations, cherry-picking (extracting only convenient data), and were not reliable.

Conspiracy theories and anti-vaccine ideas turn the 'gray zones' of science into a black-and-white dualism, making them easy to understand. That is likely why they are accepted by so many people.

But the world is not black and white; it is often gray.

I will continue to think

That is why I will continue to do fact-checking in the future.

And if I am wrong, I am prepared to change my thinking. Science is something that has always developed through a process of verification and updating. It is entirely possible that what is considered common sense at this moment will be overturned in the future.

I think it is natural to have various opinions. But I do not want to create conflict.

Why don't we look for what is 'thought to be correct' at this moment together?

By sharing what I have seen in the medical field, what I have felt, and what I have scientifically verified, I hope we can have a more constructive dialogue.

No one has a perfect answer. But we can continue to face things with sincerity. That is what I believe.

#COVIDVaccine #VoicesFromTheMedicalFrontline #FactCheck #ScientificThinking #DeltaVariant #HealthcareWorkers #VaccineControversy #SeekingDialogue #VerificationAndUpdate #LivingInTheGrayZone #ADoctorsHonestThoughts #RecordOfTheCOVIDPandemic #StatisticalLiteracy #Evidence #DiscerningInformation