Kathleen McCarthy, MAED/AEDL, BSN, RN, CCRN-K, CHSE, is very grateful for a certain opportunity she had recently. This special opportunity was receiving both doses of her COVID-19 vaccine.
“I work with providers across health care. I want them and our patients to be safe. I also don’t want to potentially contribute to the overburdening of health care resources and facilities either.”
Kathleen is one of our nurses at Mercy Health – St. Vincent Medical Center in Toledo, OH, and acknowledges there are also personal reasons behind her choice.
“I don’t want to risk the unknowns of COVID-19. Not getting a vaccine was just too much of a gamble in terms of what this virus might do to me.”
And in terms of side effects from the vaccine, Kathleen shares she didn’t experience very many.
“The first shot, I just had a sore arm for a day, but was overall good. The second shot, my muscle ached at the injection site and I was a little tired. But by day three though, I was back to normal.”
When their opportunity comes, Kathleen hopes that others choose to get both of their vaccine doses. She hopes her choice to get vaccinated will encourage those around her too.
“As a nurse, have always cared for others. This was something I could do for my community to stop the spread and return to a normal life. We all need to see people, have human interaction for mental health, financial health and get kids to get back to school so parents can work.”
In addition to being thankful for the opportunity to receive her vaccine doses so quickly, Kathleen also shares that the entire process was a smooth one.
“I’m so blessed for our facility and leaders who collaborated with local programs to provide this service of vaccination, which was no easy logistical task. Overall, the process was very well organized.”
To learn more about COVID-19 vaccination, visit the CDC’s website.
Also, stay updated on what Mercy Health is doing related to COVID-19.
