Any vaccine, including COVID-19 vaccines, must pass robust safety tests before they are approved for use, and are then subsequently reassessed periodically once in use. Any approved vaccine in the countries we operate will have had the evidence of safety reviewed in detail by the regulatory authorities prior to being able to vaccinate any person. The COVID-19 vaccines have been tested in some of the largest clinical trials that have ever been performed with vaccines, involving tens of thousands of individuals.

It is not currently known if you have effective immunity from having had the disease, therefore you should receive the vaccination. However, you might be recommended to wait 90 days from diagnosis to be vaccinated. You can also be re-infected with the disease if you have had it already. Current evidence suggests natural immunity may not last very long.

COVID-19 vaccines will most commonly cause mild reactions or side effects. These reactions should go away on their own within a few days. These mild side effects include a low-grade fever, or pain or redness at the injection site.

Having the vaccination does not mean you cannot infect others although it should protect you from becoming serious unwell. There is also the possibility that you may be a silent spreader of the disease even though have been vaccinated. It is therefore important to continue with the COVID-19 steps put in place in your country and within Diaverum clinics and continue to follow the contingency plan.

No, there is no possibility whatsoever that the new RNA vaccines, like the ones developed by Pfizer and Moderna, can change the genes in your body.

It has been reported that COVID-19 Vaccines can cause infertility, due to the reaction in the body from COVID-19 vaccines. This is not true. There is no scientific rationale, or reasonable basis to believe that there is a link between the vaccination and infertility and miscarriage. In addition, no other virus or vaccination has been shown to cause infertility. There is some anecdotal evidence that pregnant women may be more likely to be hospitalised due to COVID-19 infection.

The individual is protected no matter how many people are vaccinated. It is true however that the more people who are vaccinated, the more vulnerable groups that cannot have the vaccine are protected.