Essay Sample about Vaccine Rollout

From my role’s perspective which was the Department of Homeland Security, the vaccine priority I would have chosen was Option 1. We need all the healthcare workers, government officials, and people in critical positions to be protected against the virus before they can continue to do their job. Option 2 does seem to be more accessible to all however, in relation to today’s present vaccine rollout, the timing of vaccinating children and pregnancy women was longer since the public wanted to make sure that it would not cause harm to those two populations. Of course, administering the vaccine later to other vulnerable populations such as the immunocompromised would be concerning, but those in key positions play a crucial role in decision making during a pandemic. In the role of the DHS, the most important task is to ensure the security of the nation against any threats that may come to pass. Part of that is making sure that those who are ensuring the security are also protected against Clade X before they go on to fulfill the various duties within that. The lottery option is just, in my opinion, unorganized and has no structure to it. It’s easy to see the potential pushback from that, but what about the public’s acceptance of an option like that? That would not help the situation and combating Clade X but would also create more harm than good and also cause distraction for officials who are working diligently to serve the most vulnerable.

Different Problems Presented

Everything is related to each other in some way. The simulation represents several political problems because there are different factors that must be considered when making a critical decision. Sometimes you think you are making the best decision in the interest of others, but some or all will disagree with you. Since all positions are appointed by the President who is in office, if one of his appointees makes a “wrong move” they public and other federal officials will blame that specific party or political leader. 

Two different examples of economic problems we came across in the simulation were trade relationships and effects of a federally mandated quarantine on all businesses. There were suggestions on a travel ban from Germany and Venezuela due to the high number of confirmed cases and deaths from these countries. We had to consider the trade relationship with Germany and it’s a tough situation since it produces a lot of revenue for the United States. There was also discussion about what that would look like in the country since only certain businesses would be able to remain open like grocery stores and medical clinics. 

When it came to national security and health security the same theme of limited federal government vs. security efforts came up and it was interesting to see how my group members discussed this and their reasonings why they either opposed strict security efforts and vice versa. For example, when it came to the president mandating a national quarantine, we saw the things that would have to be planned for like food and PPE if that were to be put in place. We also saw the upset mom at the college and heard about her opinion on why she does not want her daughter there. This is something that of course reminded me of COVID-19, but also the discussions we had in class about those who would not follow certain guidelines and policies because they felt as if it was impeding on their personal liberties.

It was easy to spot the Venezuelan government as a failure because they were not taking Clade X seriously when it was affecting their country the most alongside Germany. They failed to prepare for a widespread disease and needed aid because of their lack of resources. When it came to deciding on helping Venezuela in the simulation, our group had conflicting viewpoints. One group member stated that we should help them because we don’t want them to use Clade X as bioterrorism. Meanwhile, others said that since we don’t have a good relationship with them, we are not obligated to help them and should focus on our own citizens. Another example of a failure point that could be identified was the CEO of St. Elizabeth’s Hospital and their decision to not accept from D.C. Although they are a privately funded hospital, the ethical and compassionate decision would accept these patients. His claim that it would be irresponsible had no explanation and it could be assumed that there was fear about the disease spreading and the hospital not being prepared. However, it is easy to see the obligation he has to his business and to take care of its best interest.

Public Information

To protect the health and safety of our nation during a time of uncertainty surrounding biological threats and disease, public health officials are making plans and arrangements to prepare for a first wave of Clade X spreading in the U.S. For now, make sure that you and your family are prepared for an upcoming mandatory quarantine and non-essential business shutdown. Included in this planning and preparation are non-essential business aid to those who will be out of work during the shutdown. The plan will be announced by the end of this week.

To the healthcare staff across the country, the plans and preparation are being made with you and your facilities as the frontline. Clade X is highly contagious, and we want to make sure that you are prepared with proper PPE and training to prevent this disease from spreading. This disease does not discriminate against anyone, and we must be ready to handle the surge of patients that will come within the next weeks.

For the sake of our homeland, we are setting proper prevention and containment protocols in place to mitigate the spread of Clade X. Any policy or protocol in place is not to invoke harm or cause damage to existing relationships with us, but to protect our health and safety as well as yours.

Takeaways

My first takeaway is that the decision-making process seems very stressful, and I can see how it would be difficult for the President to make a decision that pleases everyone and is effective. There are so many different suggestions that were being made and it’s a lot of pressure for one person to decide and take on the responsibility. However, the appointees are there for a reason and are also trusted by the President so ideally, they would be suggesting things that the President would most likely agree with. We saw how different policy and protocol decisions were either criticized or praised during both the Trump and Biden presidencies, and it must be even more stressful in real life.

My next takeaway is that there needs to be more of emphasis on the transparency in all departments and of course the government. What we saw with Venezuela’s government in simulation is what we saw here in the United States at first, but it was also due to the Chinese government being dishonest about the severity of COVID-19. It seems like doing the right thing even if it is the hard thing has been lost, but this is extremely important when human lives are at stake.

My last takeaway is that whenever it is possible, you should do your best to respond compassionately when someone is asking for help. Although you might be looking to your best interest, which in this case is the health and safety of the country, you should also look around and see how you can help others even if it is seems small. This may be more real life, but through COVID-19, this class, and going through the simulation it can seem easy to just live inside your own bubble of reality, but there is so much more going on. There are so many ways to serve people and when you take on the perspective that you are serving others you truly remember the humanity of people and learn how to have empathy for them, especially if they are in a life-threatening situation like COVID-19.