Stepping up in the fight against Covid – my vaccine story

When registered nurse Louie Tayag, who is proud of his Asian origin having moved to England from the Philippines, was offered the Covid-19 vaccination, he didn’t hesitate.

Louie, who has worked at our Watlington and District Nursing Home in Oxfordshire for 10 years, after completing an overseas nursing programme, said: “I have the responsibility for the people I am looking after to make sure I am safe for them. I am leaving no stone unturned by doing everything I can to join the fight against Covid and keeping our residents safe.

“I love my job and want my two children to see a dad that is not stepping away but stepping forward, so I would do anything that needs to be done to get this virus out the way.”

Louie, who is one of so many of our Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) staff who’ve had the vaccine, has the following advice to anyone who has reservations: “Trust the experts. It’s a pandemic – if anything this vaccine has been under more scrutiny than ever as the whole world is watching.

“The people who have been working hard on this vaccine have spent years studying infections and I trust them. I know it would have gone through this process and would not have been rolled out unless it was safe.”

Louie, who himself caught coronavirus at the beginning of the pandemic, said he suffered no side effects from having the vaccine along with his wife, who is also from the Philippines.

He said: “I just had a sore arm but felt absolutely fine. I can’t wait for all this to be over - don’t hesitate – just get vaccinated. I said to our residents ‘we are all in this together’.

“We can’t wait for the doors to open and for families to come in again.”

For more information about how we are protecting the safety and wellbeing of our residents during this pandemic, visit our dedicated Covid-19 information page. Or for more information about life in our homes please call our Enquiry Support Team on 0800 917 0478.