It was not that long ago that collaboration between scientists, pharmaceutical manufacturers, academics, the government and others sped the creation of COVID-19 vaccines in less than a year, putting the world on a path to return to a new normalcy.
Dr. Archana Chatterjee, dean of the Chicago Medical School at Rosalind Franklin University, sits on the Federal Food and Drug Administration’s Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee which oversaw the development of the vaccine.
Chatterjee said the vaccines were developed in less than a year because some of the technology was already in place. Some shifting of methodology was necessary, but the cooperation between everyone involved helped get shots in arms in a relatively short period of time.
“There were so many reasons it happened so quickly,” said Chatterjee, who is also the vice president of medical affairs at Rosalind Franklin. “Everyone pulled together to develop the vaccine. They worked together to secure a vaccine as soon as possible.”
“The development of safe, effective vaccines and (the) technology behind doing so was nothing short of a modern-day miracle,” added Dr. Michael Bauer, the medical director at Northwestern Medicine Lake Forest Hospital.
The coronavirus pandemic was declared a national health emergency in the United States, and the first case was reported in Lake County four years ago this week, creating changes in the way Americans still live their lives today.
Lake County Health Department Executive Director Mark Pfister oversaw the county’s effort to deal with the pandemic, protect against the disease and get people vaccinated. He spread the message of the three Ws — wash your hands, watch your distance and wear a mask.
“I call this the fourth anni-misery of the start of the pandemic,” Pfister said. “I can’t call it an anniversary because I’m not celebrating it. I am marking it.”
Lessons learned from the pandemic’s three Ws continue to be practiced. Utilizing those habits makes a difference, which is one reason there were fewer cases of flu last year, he said. Pfister said those who do are, “being good stewards of the community.”
“Many people are continuing to stay home when they are sick, wear masks, wash their hands or use hand sanitizer,” he said. “That’s one of the reasons we do not see that many cases. I have not had a cold in the last four years.”
Though few places require wearing masks to enter, there are still signs on doors recommending people wear them or saying masks are optional. Medical facilities warn people to use a face covering if they have symptoms of a disease.
With 98% of the American population developing strong immunity to COVID-19, Pfister said it is because they received vaccinations, got the disease or both. That is why there are fewer hospitalizations and deaths.
“It’s not killing us anymore,” he said.
Along with people developing natural immunity to COVID, Bauer said the virus has undergone mutations lowering the severity of the disease. Both Pfister and Bauer said people should continue taking the vaccine.
“Fortunately, the virus has mutated and evolved into what we typically see with many other respiratory illnesses, including other coronaviruses,” Bauer said. “We encourage everyone to stay up to date with vaccines and other protective mechanisms, especially those at high risk.”
While there were a lot of negatives during the pandemic, Pfister said there were also positives. Companies like AbbVie, Abbott and Baxter — along with Rosalind Franklin, other schools, the health department and public officials — banded together to get people vaccinated, he said.
Stockpiling personal protection equipment for the next time a pandemic occurs is crucial. Pfister said supply-chain issues and other situations caused critical shortages. That should be avoided. Some youngsters did not learn as much as normal through online schooling.
“Some students got less education, and we need to do everything we can help them catch up,” Pfister said.
Members of the medical profession had adjustments to make, Bauer said. People’s habits changed, forcing doctors and nurses to modify what they were doing. People stopped coming to emergency rooms and medical offices for fear of getting the disease.
“It literally turned the medical and hospital world upside down,” Bauer said. “Surgeries outside of emergency conditions were halted, and people lived in fear of dying from this new, awful disease.”
Before March of 2020, Chatterjee said the medical community was aware of what was happening with the virus in China and the possibility of a spread. By spring, the FDA held discussions about a vaccine. They were virtual, no longer face-to-face. By June, they began dealing with ways to create it.
“We talked about how to design the clinical testing,” Chatterjee said. “With the mRNA formula, there was a much faster platform. They ran clinical testing. The manufacturers got involved and started making it.”
