COVID-19 has been directly responsible for approximately 2.4 million deaths worldwide which is of grave concern considering how contagious the virus is. Unfortunately, new evidence has surfaced confirming that persons who have recovered from the virus can be reinfected.

This new information was presented by the WHO (World Health Organization) based on Preliminary reports from South Africa. According to WHO,

“There are confirmed cases of people who have recovered from COVID-19 being reinfected by a “new, more contagious variant of the virus”.

On the bright side, WHO’s Chief Scientist Dr Soumya Swaminathan confirms the COVID-19 vaccines are working. She says the vaccines are performing as intended as they have significantly reduced the severity of illness sustained by those who develop COVID-19. She said

“The vaccine trials that have been done so far in South Africa as well as in Brazil with different candidates have shown complete protection against severe disease and hospitalization and death. There hasn’t been a single case reported in any of the trials.”

While it is now substantiated that the COVID-19 vaccines do work, it is still unclear as to how potent they will be against new, more contagious strains of the virus.

Dr Swaminathan stresses the importance of vaccination and encourages us to maintain practising the established pandemic coping mechanisms. We are to continue to sanitize regularly, wear our masks and practice social distancing.