Patients get mixed (and sometimes blatantly false) messages about the COVID-19 vaccine from news sources, family and friends. Concepts surrounding the need for clinical trials to demonstrate safety, efficacy, and dosing are challenging to understand for many. As our knowledge of the virus continues to grow and evolve, guidance from health experts changes, which leads to more confusion and suspicion. Studies show that patients trust their personal physicians, and allergists are in a position to explain the necessary steps involved in drug and vaccine discovery to patients in an effort to help them understand timeline, expectations, and why some early claims will not pan out. 

Effective communication resources
Other helpful information/resources
  • What to tell your patients to do (and not do) with their vaccination cards:  
  1. Cover up personal information and vaccine lot number before taking a selfie with the card,  
  2. have a backup copy,  
  3. skip card lamination, if a booster dose becomes necessary it will be hard to add onto a laminated card.  
  4. replacement can be complicated,  
  5. There's no easy access to the data,  
  6. share vaccination status with your doctor.  "Things to tell patients about their COVID-19 vaccine card" from the AMA