Vaccine Booster

On Monday, the first day of my January vacation, I went to the health clinic and got my third vaccine shot. I had originally scheduled this appointment for February 10th but since then the requirements changed and I was eligible for an earlier time slot. All three of my vaccines have been Pfizer.

This time, I went to the clinic myself and managed to negotiate the whole process without having to speak Korean. When I arrived, I took out my ID card and passed it to the staff, but I think they were expecting me because they had my forms already out on their desk. Being a weekday morning, the clinic wasn't very busy at all, so I didn't have to wait. As soon as I signed the form, I was called into the office to check in with the doctor. With her using broken English and me guessing what she was saying based on the context, I managed to communicate that I had no ill side-effects from my previous shots and no allergies.

Next, I went into another room and the nurse was ready right then to give me the needle. I saw an old man lying on the bed, under a blanket with an oxygen mask on his face. That's how they let some patients recover if they feel faint or sick after the injection. I took the shot in my left arm and then sat in the lobby for ten minutes before the nurse said I was free to go. It was in Korean, but that's what I assume she said.

I managed to communicate to the staff that I wanted paper documentation of all of my vaccines. Actually, I showed her a picture on my phone of what I wanted. So, she printed it off for me. I was happy that everything went smoothly. I'm a little more independent in Korea, now, after nearly two years. But sometimes little things go wrong. Yesterday, I went to the post office to send postcards, and of course, I waited in the wrong line. Those kinds of blunders are so common that I kinda expect them  every time I try to do something on my own. In the end, I get done what I need to accomplish.

Getting documentation of my vaccine history in Korea is essential for my return to Canada. I will need to prove to the Canadian authorities that I am vaccinated in order to qualify as a 'vaccinated person' entering Canada. With that, I'll have a shorter quarantine period, which will be much appreciated. I'll also have to go through the arduous task of having the health authorities in Ontario recognize my vaccinations from a foreign country. They should recognize the Pfizer vaccine, but there is a lot of red tape to go through.

My booster vaccination comes just in time as South Korea has reached another all-time high of COVID-19 infections. South Korea reported 13,012 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, and the OMICRON variant is now the dominant strain in the country. Despite this, new rules will come into effect that no longer require people who've had close contact with a covid-positive person to isolate. They will still need to be tested, though. 

I felt fine after my booster shot, except for a slight headache that went away soon after I ate some food and had a rest. Looking back, Korea was quite delayed in rolling out vaccines to the population. We waited months, wondering when we would have vaccines while watching other countries immunize their populations. Now, I've had three vaccine shots and feel very fortunate to have this available to me in Korea.