In the month of August, more than 500 positive cases of COVID-19 were diagnosed in Grenada County and one local infectious disease expert said it’s pivotal for people to get vaccinated now.
Justice Gondwe, M.D., Grenada’s infectious disease and internal medicine physician, said there’s a rise in hospitalizations mainly due to those who are unvaccinated. He said there are several people that are unsure about getting the vaccination, but assures people that they are safe.
“That’s a message that I feel like is important to get out there,” Gondwe said. “We have to have more people to get vaccinated.”
According to the Mississippi State Department of Health, nearly 38 percent of Grenada County has been fully vaccinated. Yalobusha County is the highest among fully vaccinated people in neighboring counties with 47 percent and Calhoun is the lowest at 28 percent.
Gondwe said one of the things that he is concerned with is a lot of untruths and misinformation leading people not to get the vaccine.
“If you have any issues with the vaccine, then that is the least of your worries,” Gondwe said. “I’ve even heard some say that the vaccine was produced in too short of a timeframe and that’s their reason for not getting the shot. I will tell you this, there were trials and data was produced. The vaccination was produced so quickly because there was a ton of cooperation in getting it. The FDA got this information fast because of that cooperation.”
Gondwe said the African-American community has been hit hardest since the beginning of the pandemic and added that many are seeing issues such as hypertension, high blood pressure and kidney disease, which proves that COVID-19 vaccination could very well be a life saver.
“The important thing is getting vaccinated,” Gondwe said. “This is for people ages 12 and up, get the vaccine because nothing has happened. If you look at the population of those that have been vaccinated and the general population of those that hasn’t received the shot there’s a big difference. One of the main things that they see in the ICU is the people who are sick are unvaccinated.”
Gondwe added that local churches can play a major role in getting information out about vaccine. He said the church has always been a place where people look for leadership and with the COVID -19 vaccine that is just the case.
In the Pleasant Grove Community at Gore Springs, members of the Pleasant Grove Missionary Baptist Church were already on board. Gore Springs resident Jeanette Johnson and Grenada native Tiffany Riley used their resources to hold a vaccination clinic site last Saturday at the church just off Highway 8 East and Pleasant Grove Road.
“We knew there were people in Gore Springs that needed to get the vaccine,” Johnson said. “Tiffany saw a post that I made on social media and she was like, ‘let’s go.’”
Johnson reached out to the MSDH, officials at the church and Riley reached out to Walgreens. Last Saturday, the first of two COVID-19 vaccine sites were held. Close to 100 people showed up at the site and even cars from neighboring Calhoun County pulled up.
“We had to get on board with this,” Johnson concluded. “We even found out about elderly people out here who could not leave their homes due to preexisting conditions. Well, the MSDH found out about them and set up a time to administer shots to them. This was a true blessing.”
