#BTEditorial – Conflicting messages not working

It is quite baffling, that as a nation we project one reality when we know that on the ground, the average citizen sees the situation in a completely different vein.

We speak to the issue of the return to full face-to-face classes in our schools since the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic forced us to introduce online teaching and then a hybrid process of education for the nation’s children.

There is no denying that our children’s education has been harmed over the past two to three years and that we cannot continue to watch their performance deteriorate.

The cognitive dissonance is occurring with the dismantling of most of the remaining protocols that formed the backbone of our COVID-19 mitigation measures, while at the same time, our government has acquired thousands of doses of COVID vaccines specifically for children.

On the one hand, the Ministry of Education has made it clear that the three-foot physical distancing rule is being abandoned, the number of days in isolation for the disease has been cut significantly for those whose infection has been confirmed, and most important, there is no requirement to be vaccinated against the disease in order to return to school next week.

Meanwhile, co-coordinator of the National COVID-19 Vaccination Programme, Dr Elizabeth Ferdinand is expressing concern that too few children are being brought to the vaccination centres to get the free protection from the viral illness.

Of course, children who depend on the approval of their parents are not going to come forward to get the vaccine. Why? The signal has been sent from the highest levels that as a country, we have moved on from COVID.

Yes, the mask mandate remains in force for indoor gatherings, but a cursory  review of many indoor gatherings in recent weeks will reveal  that the rule is being observed more in the breach.

At the recently staged AfriCaribbean Trade and Investment Forum, for example, more participants were unmasked than those who were, even in some of the most tightly packed meeting rooms at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre, where the main events occurred.

It is understandable that Barbadians are exhausted from the various anti-COVID-19 information. As a result, the messaging surrounding the issue is not penetrating despite continued reports of fatalities from the disease among our seniors.

Last month, the country was gifted 14,400 doses of the paediatric Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for children ages five to 11 from the United Kingdom government.

Despite the expressions of gratitude from Minister of Health and Wellness Ian Gooding-Edghill to the UK for the donation, noting that it would go a long way in advancing the country’s fight against COVID, there has been very little messaging from the Ministry that would entice parents to get their children vaccinated.

It is therefore reasonable to ask, why accept such a large donation of vital vaccines, if there is no articulated and concomitant strategy to get parents to have their children vaccinated.

Dr Ferdinand has been a hardworking, dedicated public officer. She has even abandoned her life of retirement to return and perform national duties during our time of crisis.

We hate to predict it, but we suspect many  of those precious vials of vaccines may end up on the rubbish heap at Mangrove Pond unless there is a plan to get vaccines into the arms of our young children.

It is as if Barbados wants to exist in alternative realities where on the one hand our aim is to get on with life because the danger of COVID is behind us, while on the other hand, the co-coordinator of the vaccine programme tells largely skeptical parents to let their children take the jab.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the United States, protecting children from COVID-19 is still a priority, especially as the 2022 winter season approaches.

If children are protected, it helps to protect older persons in their households. The paediatric COVID vaccines continue to protect children against severe illness, including hospitalisation and gives parents and teachers greater confidence about interacting with others as children return to school.

Our falling infection numbers in Barbados, medical professionals tell us, have much to do with the well over 154, 000 Barbadians who are already vaccinated against the disease. The relatively high vaccination numbers are said to have contributed greatly to our management of illness here and the relatively low level of fatalities from disease, when compared to other countries.