Across the globe, people have been working around the clock to develop and manufacture the vaccines that will help protect us from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). They don’t just want the vaccines for their families, they want them for the world. People who work within the biopharmaceutical industry have been affected by the global pandemic in many of the same ways that everyone else has. They’ve had to deal with loss, balancing work, and homeschooling while also supporting family members, parents, and friends in unexpected ways. All the while working to help advance science and bring COVID-19 vaccines into the world. In today’s column, I want to share some of their stories.
Rita works on global clinical development of vaccines in the US. Amid the pandemic, balancing work and kids, and protecting her elderly parents — especially her father who has diabetes — has been a big challenge for her. Rita’s husband is a doctor who works on the frontline. “He has scars on his face from wearing PPE [personal protective equipment], but it’s just something he has to do,” she says. “We hope COVID-19 vaccines will relieve some of the pressure on hospitals and healthcare workers like him.”
As an infectious disease physician, Rita understands the process of vaccine development and trusts the science. “At every step, our work goes through rigorous research and development processes. Vaccines are tested with tens of thousands of people and the results are verified by independent experts before they can be made available to the public.”
Rita and her family plan to get vaccinated against COVID-19 as soon as they are eligible. “I hope everyone who is eligible to get vaccinated will do the same. Vaccination is one of the best tools we have to help protect those we love, and to help us fight and hopefully end the pandemic. And, that’s what we need to do to get back to normal.”
Patrick, a vaccine scientist in France, has seen the devastating impact that COVID-19 has had on families firsthand. His two elderly uncles got COVID-19. One uncle was in a coma for several weeks after developing serious complications, and had to undergo surgery and receive skin implants on the side of his cheeks. Another uncle ended up in hospital on a respirator. Thankfully, both have recovered. To help protect his elderly parents, Patrick, like many of us, had to forego their traditional holiday gathering last year.
“It’s so important to me that we create a safe and effective vaccine because my family has been badly affected by the disease. By getting vaccinated, you won’t just be protecting yourself, you’ll be helping to protect all the vulnerable people like my uncles and parents too,” said Patrick.
Omon works with the government in Nigeria to prepare the country for the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines — from strengthening healthcare delivery to providing immunization awareness support. The pandemic has made matters worse in Nigeria, a country where about 40% of the population live in poverty.
“Convincing people who have very little and depend on daily work, or selling goods at the market to have enough to eat, to follow lockdown isn’t easy — we’re talking about people’s livelihoods. So, putting lockdowns in place was a major challenge for the government,” said Omon.
Omon lost a good friend to COVID, a doctor working on the front line who was doing his best to save lives. “I’m more determined than ever to do all I can to protect others like him and support our healthcare systems, so that they are ready to introduce COVID-19 vaccines, and equipped to maintain routine immunization programs.”
Katrin is part of a team in Austria that is involved in the research and development of new vaccine candidates. Because of the pandemic, she and her husband have been working from home while at the same time homeschooling their children. She worries about her parents who are both over 80; the pandemic has prevented her from visiting them more often. “It’s been hard for me, but even harder for my parents not to see their grandchildren who they love very much and who keep them active. As COVID-19 vaccines become available and as more and more people get vaccinated, I hope I will be able to be there for my parents again.”
Everyone on Katrin’s team of vaccine researchers has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of them know someone who has been sick. They have all struggled in their own ways, and they all have a personal story that motivates their work. “We all want our kids — and families everywhere — to get back to normal. That’s why we’ve been working around the clock to advance the science of COVID-19 vaccines. We trust that the hard work will get us one step closer to ending the pandemic.”
We are honored to be working with Rita, Patrick, Omon, Katrin, and others in #TeamVaccines in containing the pandemic. Indeed, the COVID-19 pandemic is getting worse each day as the country exceeds 10,000 cases per day. Filipinos working in the biopharmaceutical sector have also lost loved ones to the pandemic. They, together with their colleagues in other parts of the world, are working harder to somehow bring us back to the days when we could walk freely in a park and get together with family and friends.
Teodoro B. Padilla is the executive director of the Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Association of the Philippines (PHAP). PHAP and its member companies represent the research-based pharmaceutical sector in the country.
