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My COVID-19 vaccination journey

28 May 2021 | Story Anita Lombard | Photo Supplied

Anita Lombard_web — Anita Lombard (left) and Dr Adre le Roux, Senior Lecturer in the School of Education Studies, were among the first people over 60 years to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

A journey is always part of the destination and Drake once said: “Sometimes it’s the journey that teaches you a lot about your destination.”

My Sesotho name is Lerato, meaning ‘love’, but on our UFS campuses I am better known as Anita Lombard from UVPERSU – of which I have been an integral part since 1999 when I was appointed as the first full-time CEO of the trade union.

On 5 March 2020, the lives of all South Africans changed dramatically. COVID-19 entered our country through a person carrying an invisible virus monster, which was by then already raging through the world, and we all had to adapt urgently to a ‘new normal’.

It was in our hands to adapt to the changing environment and not allow COVID-19 to wipe us out to become extinct like the dinosaurs that were wiped out by an asteroid many years ago.

The one moment, we, as a very privileged family, were spending a glorious long weekend in Cape Town in February 2020, marching with the community and world-famous cellist Yo-Yo Ma in support of the oppressed and displaced District Six people, enjoying the beauty of the mountain and the sea, and drinking wine on the sunny terrace of a beautiful wine farm – and the next moment, we were back home and caught up in a Level five lockdown.

Living through a pandemic

At first, I was so overwhelmed by what was happening around me, that I didn’t grasp the reality and the seriousness of my own journey that lay ahead. This journey through the COVID-19 pandemic would teach me a lot about myself, other people, and my eventual COVID-19 destination dream, which became reality on a chair in a vaccination venue at the Universitas Hospital in Bloemfontein in the Free State on Monday 24 May 2021.

I can write a book about how I initially coped with protecting and shielding myself from the virus monster by working from home, which I, as a self-acknowledged and disciplined workaholic, came to enjoy very much – doing all my shopping online, which opened up a whole new world for me, and re-arranging my entire social life to cope with circumstances and still maintain a balance to keep my sanity. I very soon realised that I would never become a successful motivational speaker, since it’s easy to motivate people who have the same resources as I, as a privileged person. It has become a serious challenge and a life goal to work out ways in which to help others who are not so privileged, and I would love to share it with you when there is an opportunity to do so. I believe it should be an ongoing process to give to those who are suffering in many ways.

I will probably write proper memoirs one day, but for now I just want to share my vaccination journey, its history, and my innermost fears, emotions, and desires with you, without becoming a scientific dictionary. This is the story of an ordinary human being who wanted to stay alive and healthy amid the onslaught of a monster.

Vaccination in the news

I have always enjoyed reading about topics of the day, but all of a sudden, these topics became negative facts and narratives about a killer virus’ path of destruction and heartbreak. During a time of panic and despondency, a small light appeared in a dark tunnel – scientists and big pharmaceutical companies started working on a vaccine for this novel killer virus.

At the same time, fake news and horror stories about the virus and vaccines started dominating news headlines. Yes, at times I was very bitter, since – as an animal and wildlife activist – I will never ever be able to understand, identify with, or accept so-called ‘wet markets’ where innocent and defenceless animals suffer beyond words at the hands of humans. Even after more than a year of the pandemic that rocked the world, the real origin of this specific virus remains largely a mystery. Could it be that nature is taking revenge? But that is a debate for another day.

All the time, I carried on reading widely and attending as many information webinars as possible, both nationally and internationally. I stuck to reliable sources and avoided dodgy videos and alien stories that were too far-fetched to be true! I tried very hard to stay calm and positive, to believe in my common sense, and rely on my logic and sound scientific arguments. Because of this attitude, I could easily distinguish between fake news and facts. I must say, it helps a lot to be part of an excellent institution like the University of the Free State, where I can mingle with top medical and other scientists and take serious note of their research and guidance. Our HR department delivers world-class information and support, and I will always be very proud of my engagement with them during these difficult times. I commend Ms Susan van Jaarsveld and her team, Sister Riana Johnson, Head of Kovsie Health, and her team, Protection Services and all the other essential workers, support staff, and academics on our three campuses. Your hard work and sacrifices are highly appreciated. We are dependent on students as our clients and the ship had to be kept afloat.

UVPERSU is a very unique trade union, and its values and goals still help to keep me on track. Our UVPERSU team’s total commitment to combat the pandemic and to protect our members’ jobs and to secure a safe workplace, is the best motivation one can dream of to stay positive and work together to slay this virus monster.

Vaccination breakthrough

At last, the vaccination breakthrough came, and with it, hope that many lives can be saved! I also lost family members, friends, and colleagues who succumbed to COVID-19, and this had an effect on my own mental stability and emotional well-being. At times it felt like a child’s seesaw ride – one moment up in the clouds and the next moment you bump hard onto the ground. At the same time, I had to support UVPERSU members and other friends and family who needed my support and advice. Bob Marley once said that you never know how strong you are, until being strong is the only choice you have. An unknown person said that being strong doesn’t mean that you will never get hurt, but it means that even when you get hurt, you won’t let it defeat you. I could relate to people who felt alone and lonesome and the thought that I won’t allow to be defeated and that I could support other people, kept me strong. Here I must say that I am also very lucky to have a wonderful support system of friends, family, and colleagues, and technology became a very close best friend! If you do Skype or Teams, you don’t have to wear a mask and you don’t need to be scared of contracting COVID! The same goes for WhatsApp video calls!

The vaccination experiments eventually developed into real action, with people all over the world being vaccinated. My family and friends in Europe, the US, UK, and Cyprus shared the good news with me, while at the same time sympathising with me, since in South Africa, it was not always clear what would happen and when and how vaccinations will happen, who will be the first to receive vaccinations, and if there will be enough vaccines. I visited the Seychelles in 2019, and when I recently read how many people of the total population on this faraway island paradise have already been vaccinated, I wanted to cry. After the AstraZeneca disaster, I really started to doubt if we will ever be vaccinated. I was fast losing hope that we would be vaccinated any time soon. It didn’t help much to read about predictions stating that it would take many years to vaccinate the entire SA population!

My faith, my wonderful and fulfilling UVPERSU job, exercising regularly, and playing my piano and keyboard have helped me a lot to stay hopeful and positive. Since my early childhood, I have always been scared of going to the doctor and of injections! But as I grew up and realised that travelling to weird and wonderful places would involve vaccinations, I overcame most of my fears, and injections became friends to protect me against visits to doctors! So here I was, too eager for words to be vaccinated! After many of my colleagues and friends in the health sector were vaccinated, I couldn’t wait to feel that needle in my arm! In the end, I actually didn’t really feel anything, since the nurse who administered my vaccine was clearly a pro!

I read every day about vaccination phases and rollouts and sometimes got very frustrated with the slow progress! I registered three times on the EVDS system, and I also registered on the Discovery system! I must admit – a total overkill, but I wanted to make sure I won’t be skipped! Imagine my excitement when the UFS HR department and the Free State’s own vaccinations hero, Dr Nicholas Pearce, started explaining in a meeting that my dream could soon become a reality! I never doubted the scientific composition of the vaccine or believed any ridiculous claim about DNA changes, etc. I just wanted some protection against a killer, which already claimed too many lives.

Then the wait began for the magical SMS with an invitation and a code … to this day, I haven’t received that invitation, but thanks to Dr Nicholas Pearce and his initiatives and drives, I received my vaccination on Monday 24 May 2021, after I almost lost hope during the previous weekend! On my way to the vaccination site, I experienced a whirlwind of emotions – I didn’t know whether I should laugh or cry! But there’s another story to the story! Age! For the first time in my life, I was glad that I was over 60 and not 35, as we always joke in our family!

Getting the shot

The set-up at the Universitas Hospital vaccination site was absolutely fantastic and very organised. We can really be very proud of Dr Pearce and his team, and I want to thank them from the bottom of my heart for what they are doing for us here in our small, but COVID-ridden Free State province. We shall overcome!

I feel guilty that I am so privileged and that I got my vaccination before other younger people with more serious comorbidities than my mild asthma. I just hope and pray that they will get their vaccinations soon. It is so important to stay safe and to sacrifice, among other things, social gatherings, until you can get your vaccination. Wear that mask, sanitise, and keep your social distance.

Through my posts on Facebook, I could help many people and refer them to Universitas Hospital. I could also adjure them to get vaccinated and allay fears created by fake news. I didn’t become an alien; I didn’t grow a monkey tail and I don’t have magnetic powers in my injected arm! I am still the Anita from UVPERSU that many of you have known for years! What has changed, is that I now have antibodies and other ways and means to help my body fight a killer disease.

My dream to be vaccinated, came true … I now hope and pray that my fellow Africans and people all over the globe can be vaccinated so that we can slay this monster that are ruining lives, jobs, freedom, happiness, and many other things that we have so often taken for granted.

Get vaccinated, and so we will achieve together as UVPERSU’s magical slogan urges us to do. Achieve together – Re fihlella mmoho

News Archive

During 2011: Achievements at the UFS

2011-12-01

Sarah Shannon

Dr Alex Amtaika, Department of Political Science

During a conference at Khon Kaen University in Thailand, Dr Alexius Amtaika from our Department of Political Science was elected as Executive Director and Convener of the International Committee of Scholars of Local Government. This honour was bestowed upon Dr Alexius during the first International Conference on Local Government at Khon Kaen University.

Sarah Shannon

We all have heard stories about inspirational people, who defy the odds, fight circumstance every day and never give up. Sarah Shannon has cerebral palsy but has never stopped dreaming and achieving them.

Sarah is also a competitive swimmer, and is currently ranked seventh in the world in her class of disabilities.

She is currently completing her postgraduate certificate in Education, Foundation Phrase, through Unisa. She is also studying Sociology at our university.

DW Bester and Sannah Mokone, Rhodes Scholars

Of the four open Rhodes Scholarships available to students from all universities in Southern Africa, two of our students won these prestigious scholarships. DW Bester, B.Sc. Hons. Actuarial Science student, and Sannah Mokone, BPub-cum laude student, joined Oxford University in the United Kingdom in September 2011 to further their studies.

The Rhodes Scholarships, arguably one of the most prestigious scholarships in the world, were founded in 1903 in the will of Cecil John Rhodes and cover the full costs of study at Oxford University.

While academic excellence is a pre-condition for consideration for the Rhodes Scholarship, these scholarships are unique in that Rhodes Scholars are outstanding young students who excel academically, but very importantly, demonstrate leadership, are committed to making a difference in the world, and have the energy to fulfill their ambitions.

Dr Derik Coetzee, Department of Sport and Exercise Sciences

When you suddenly receive a call during a World Cup year and requested to come and assist in leading the Springboks, then you have to know, you have something to offer. This is what happened to Dr Derik Coetzee from our Department of Exercise and Sports Sciences. This year he once again became involved in the Springbok rugby team, after he had been die Bokke’s conditioning trainer from 2004 to 2007.

His primary task as conditioning head was to help in seeing to it that the Springboks reached their best level of play – psychologically, physically an emotionally. Amongst others, his duties included the optimisation of the players’ muscle and explosive power, speed, anaerobic ability and technical skills.

Jefferson J Dirks-Korkee en Mart Kotzé

Jefferson J Dirks-Korkee, from Willowmore in the Eastern Cape, and Mart Kotzé from Bloemfontein, recently made history by being the first students from our Department of Drama and Theatre Arts featuring in an Afrikaans South African film Skoonheid, the first ever to be shown at the Cannes Film Festival.

The movie won the Queer Palm Award at the 2011 Cannes International Film Festival, where Robert de Niro was the chairperson of the panel of judges.

Prof. Muriel Meiring, Department of Haematology and Cell Biology

Prof. Muriel Meiring, Specialist Scientist in our Department of Haematology and Cell Biology, is responsible for establishing the Specialised Haemostasis Laboratory at our university and the Universitas Hospital’s National Health Laboratory Service. She established this centre as a reference centre for Von Willebrand disease, a genetic bleeding disorder, in South Africa. This laboratory is internationally recognised for their research and as a reference laboratory.

Prof. Meiring develops and tests antithrombotic (anti-clotting) agents and her long list of publications, research awards and congress presentations has earned her a nomination for the Department of Science and Technology’s Distinguished Woman Scientist Award. She was one of two scientists of the National Health Laboratory Services (NHLS) to receive the award – Prof. Meiring being the only woman from our university.

Medical facilities from all over the country make use of her and her team’s expertise when testing for blood disorders and she hopes to expand the centre even further.

Melinda Jonker

Melinda Jonker, one of our third-year financial economic students, won the overall national competition of the prestigious Traders Trophy competition at the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE).

The competition, sponsored by Nedbank Capital and Oxyor in Amsterdam, requires participants to trade actual JSE-listed shares against one another on a simulated platform. The winner is determined not only by the highest profit, but also by the technique used throughout the trading session.

Christopher Diab, also a student from our Department of Economics, won the regional UFS competition.

ASSAf members

Seven of our academic colleagues have been elected as members of the Academy for Science of South Africa (ASSAf). They are Proff. Hendrik Swart, Physics; André Roodt, Chemistry; Zakkie Pretorius, Plant Sciences; Max Finkelstein, Mathematics; James du Preez, Microbial, Biochemical and Food Biotechnology; Maryke Labuschagne, Plant Breeding; and Neil Roos from our Postgraduate School.

Due main objective of the Academy is to promote and apply scientific thought in the service of the society, in order to determine the quality and scope of the role that the Academy can plays in the country’s life and progress, and eventually apply it

Other colleagues who are currently members of ASSAf include Proff. Jonathan Jansen, Vice-Chancellor and Rector; Johan Henning, Dean: Faculty of Law; and Frans Swanepoel, Senior Director: Research Development.

Samantha Renda-Dollman

Samantha Renda-Dollman, a BSc (Zoology) student on our Qwaqwa Campus, has obtained 19 distinctions out of the 22 modules she has written since 2009.

Her hard work earned Samantha the prestigious Dux Student award of our 2011 Annual Student Affairs Excellence Awards, held at our Qwaqwa Campus. This makes her the best overall academic performer of the entire student body on this campus.

Jaco Griessel

Jaco Griessel, an Honours student at our Odeion School for Music, received a prestigious Mandela Rhodes bursary for 2012 to study towards his Master’s degree next year.

Jaco, who is currently busy with his BMus Honours degree, is a performer par excellence, with many achievements to his name. In 2010, he received the Fanie Beetge Prize for the best undergraduate student in Systematic Music Studies. A year before, he received the same prize as best undergraduate student in Historic Music Studies. He shall continue his Master’s degree with Music Composition as field of specialisation at our university in 2012.

Prof. Helena van Zyl, UFS School of Management

Prof. Helena van Zyl, Director of the UFS Business School, was elected as President of the South African Association of Business Schools (SABSA). Since the beginning of 2010 she has been acting as president. Prof. Van Zyl is the first woman to occupy this position and also the first woman who is currently heading a business school in South Africa. She will serve SABSA as the president for the next two years.

Prof. Zakkie Pretorius, Department of Plant Sciences

Research by Prof. Zakkie Pretorius from our Department of Plant Sciences, has become part of Phase II of a mayor global project to combat deadly strains of a wheat pathogen that poses a threat to global food security.

Prof. Pretorius focuses on the identification of resistance in wheat to the stem rust disease and will assist breeders and geneticists in the accurate phenotyping of international breeding lines and mapping populations. In addition, Prof. Pretorius will support scientists from Africa with critical skills development through training programmes.

The Ug99 strain was discovered in Kenya in 1998, but are now also threatening major wheat-growing areas of Southern and Eastern Africa, the Central Asian Republics, the Caucasus, the Indian subcontinent, South America, Australia and North America.

Prof. Danie Strauss, research fellow in the Faculty of Humanities

Prof. Danie Strauss, a research fellow in our Faculty of the Humanities, won the Dooyeweerd Prize from the Board of the Association for Reformational Philosophies in Amsterdam. Prof. Strauss, former Dean of our Faculty of the Humanities and head of our Department of Philosophy, won the prize for his book Philosophy: Discipline of the Disciplines. The prize is awarded for work in the field of systematic philosophy.

Nida Jooste and Ryan Lamb, Abe Bailey Travel Bursary holders

Nida Jooste and Ryan Lamb are two of the proud recipients of Abe Bailey Travel Bursaries. Both students are academic achievers, but also excel in other fields. This is what set them apart from the rest of the applicants for the bursaries.

Ryan (23), a Medical Physics Honours student at our Faculty of Health Sciences, received the Senate’s Medal for the best Bachelor’s Degree student at the UFS. He was one of 100 students at the Brightest Young Minds Summit this year and was one of the 2008 delegates to the World Youth Forum, hosted by the International Association for Poetry and Solidarity in Italy.

Nida (21) is a very familiar face on our Bloemfontein Campus, as she served as the Deputy Chairperson of our Interim Student Council in 2011.

Loerie Award for Tarran Jacobs, Elizabeth Forson and Mafohlela Mahlatsi

The creativity of a group of students from our university was rewarded with a bronze Loerie Award after they won an internal competition. Tarran Jacobs, Elizabeth Forson and Mafohlela Mahlatsi, all third-year Marketing Communication students, won the award for an advertisement they designed for Cansa.

Each year, the third-year Marketing Communication students of our Department of Communication Science have the opportunity to flex their creative muscles in the Copy-writing class. The challenge is to design two advertisements for any charity organisation by applying the knowledge they gained from the subject in a practical way. The top three groups are then entered for the Loerie and Pendoring awards – two of the most prestigious awards in the South African advertising industry.

The top three groups designed advertisements for Cansa, the South African Blood Service and Crime Line.

Hendrik Kruger and Anke Malan walk away with awards at Pfizer UKZN Young Health Scientists Research Symposium

Two students in our Faculty of Health Sciences won awards at a Pfizer UKZN Young Health Scientists Research Symposium.

Hendrik Kruger, a medical student, represented his group, which won the clinical category with the paper “Injury patterns of occupants surviving motor vehicle accidents in the Free State”. This presentation was based on a study which is the first of its kind in South Africa.

The group with Anke Malan from our Department of Nutrition and Dietetics as presenter received the prize in the community-based category with the presentation ’Knowledge, practices and perceptions of undergraduate students at the UFS regarding the risk factors of osteoporoses’. Anke’s team was also nominated as the overall winner of the symposium. Presentations were delivered in three categories, namely clinical, community-based and laboratory research.

Prof. Louis Scott, Department of Plant Sciences

Prof. Louis Scott from our Department of Plant Sciences was formally rewarded the Fellowship of Royal Society of South Africa (RSSA).

Prof. Scott is an internationally recognised Palinologist at our university and a B-rated scientist.

Fellows of the RSSA are considered to be part of a very elite group of South African scientists who have achieved international acknowledgment.

Prof. Aldo Stroebel, International Academic Programmes in the Office of the Vice-Chancellor

Prof. Aldo Stroebel has been elected as a Founding Member of the South African Young Academy of Science (SAYAS).

He is Associate Professor in our Centre for Sustainable Agriculture, Rural Development and Extension, as well as the Director of International Academic Programmes in the Office of the Vice-Chancellor.

The Young Academy has as its objectives to represent young scientists in advising the government on science and technology policy and human resource development. In addition, they will prepare the SAYAS to join the Global Young Academy (GYA) to engage with high-level international bodies, including the World Economic Forum.

Prof. Lodewyk Kock, Department of Microbial, Biochemical and Food Biotechnology

Prof. Lodewyk Kock was a sought-after keynote speaker at various conferences and seminars around the globe on our nanotechnology breakthrough research.

He delivered keynote lectures at international conferences of repute in the USA, China and Greece. In the USA he delivered a the keynote address at the Conference & Exhibition on Pharmaceutical Regulatory Affairs (Pharma-2011), held in Baltimore, and was a keynote speaker at the 2nd World Congress on Biotechnology in Philadelphia. He was also invited to present various lectures abroad.

He posted two video lectures in e-conference format on his research on the web page of the journal Translational Biomedicine. He was also invited by the International Society of Translational Medicine (ISTM) to head their “Molecular Imaging” Division.

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