Columbia Memorial | Health Compass | Winter 2021

Get the COVID-19 vaccine By Regina Mysliwiec, MD, Medical Director, CMH Emergency Department What an unbelievable year we’ve had! I know many people would like to write off the past 12 months and move on, but I think there are some truly amazing things that we need to recognize. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, medical scientists around the world went to work developing vaccines to stop it. Within a year, they had developed and tested several vaccines that have proven effective against COVID-19 — including the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines. Our best hope Vaccination is our best hope of ending this pandemic and finding our way back to our normal lives. It is true that we could take our chances with the disease, but that’s the riskiest way for us to develop herd immunity. We’re discovering that the aftereffects of COVID-19 infection can be terrible and long-lasting. Healthy young people are suddenly having trouble with brain fog, blood clots, fatigue and shortness of breath. Some may face a lifetime of disability, much like people who were infected with polio in the 1900s. Please get the COVID-19 vaccine, when you can, to protect yourself and others. We are so fortunate to be living in a time when safe and effective vaccines are available! Our ancestors who lived through flu pandemics, the plague, typhoid fever and more prayed for just such a miracle. Steve Donnelly, MD, Emergency Physician: “Getting this vaccine means so much to me. Not only is it protecting us as health care workers, it is protecting all those we care about most — our family, friends, patients and community. The full impact of this vaccine is hard to put into words.” at the end of the tunnel A LIGHT Lisa Belanger, MRI Tech: “I feel I’m doing the right thing by getting the vaccine. I worry about unknowingly bringing this virus home. I’m getting vaccinated for my family and the community.” Photos by Hailey Hoffman, The Astorian CMH HEALTH COMPASS is published as a community service by COLUMBIA MEMORIAL HOSPITAL, a Planetree Gold-Certified Person-Centered Care Facility. 2111 Exchange St., Astoria, OR 97103, telephone 503-325-4321, website: columbiamemorial.org For information about CMH HEALTH COMPASS: Nancee Long , Director of Communications Erik Thorsen Chief Executive Officer Nicole Williams Chief Operating Officer Zach Schmitt Chief Financial Officer Jarrod Karnofski Vice President, Ancillary and Support Services Judy Geiger Vice President, Patient Care Services Constance Waisanen President, Board of Trustees Cover photo by Hailey Hoffman, The Astorian . Information in CMH HEALTH COMPASS comes from a wide range of medical experts. If you have any concerns or questions about specific content that may affect your health, please contact your health care provider. Modelsmay be used in photos and illustrations. 2021 © Coffey Communications, Inc. All rights reserved.