The first vaccinations against covid-19 were carried out in Sweden on 27 December 2020 at Boken's nursing home in Mjölby in Östergötland, shortly after eight o'clock in the morning, where Gun-Britt Johnsson became the first person to be vaccinated.
Declining death toll
With the results in hand, it can be stated that 2021 - in the number of dead and sick in covid-19 counted - on behalf of Sweden has turned out better than the previous year.
A vaccinated person can still be infected with coronavirus but is significantly less likely to develop a serious illness.
- It is clear that it is difficult and difficult for people to become infected, but we have reduced the death toll somewhat enormously, says Richard Bergström.
Low vaccine coverage worries
When it comes to the future, Richard Bergström mainly thinks of two issues.
- One is that we may have to update the vaccine against covid.
It is clear now that this is a three-dose vaccine, that's the way to go about it.
The other thing that worries him is the low vaccine coverage in many parts of the world.
- It's not only about the lack of vaccines but also about the fact that many do not want to be vaccinated, he says and takes South Africa as an example.
- The fact that the vaccination rate is so low there is not because there is no vaccine in South Africa, but because people do not trust the vaccine or the government.
What can be done about it?
- On the one hand, it is a matter of continued information, to continue to communicate, communicate, communicate.
We have been successful in the EU, where we have significantly higher vaccination coverage than I thought we would get.
The second is to use the covid evidence.