With the COVID-19 vaccine having been put into place across the world now, the doctors here at Healthwords have listened to many of the public’s pressing questions in their frontline work so let’s address your concerns and give you the information you need to decide on taking up the offer of the vaccine if you still haven’t had it, either for yourself or a loved one.

PCR tests (polymerase chain reaction tests) have been used since the start of the pandemic to test for the presence of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) and alert scientists to any new variants. A PCR test needs to be sent off to a laboratory, and results can take one to three days to return. Rapid lateral flow tests came in a bit later in the pandemic, and can be done at home, with the result quickly available within minutes and they resemble a pregnancy test. Generally speaking, the lateral flow test is useful for those without symptoms and the PCR test is for those with symptoms. Anecdotally, the PCR test may show positive a few days prior to the lateral flow test.

The initial outbreak of COVID-19 was in Wuhan, China, and many people referred to the disease and any subsequent variants by the city or country of origin. The World Health Organisation (WHO) felt this caused undue discrimination and stigma against certain countries and places, and may deter them from declaring new variants they had found. They needed to find a naming framework that avoided causing offence to any cultural, ethnic or social groups, and decided to name each variant after a letter of the Greek alphabet. The initial virus was called novel coronavirus, or SARS-CoV-2 – not too catchy, so you may not have heard of it. Subsequent variants were named Alpha, Beta, Gamma, and Delta and are to continue in this manner.

Your turn has come, you’ve booked your slot, it might be at a centre you don’t know, but you're feeling ready. Let’s walk you through what to expect once you’re there, and top tips so your vaccine appointment runs smoothly.

You finally got your invite and booked your appointment, and you’ve heard various stories about what to expect after your vaccine. Millions have received this now, and the vast majority have experienced only mild symptoms or none at all, with serious reactions very rare. Forewarned is forearmed, so let’s go through the most likely symptoms for the hours and days after your vaccine, and what might help.

If you’re choosing to live your life according to a particular set of beliefs, you’ll naturally want everything to be compatible with this. It's natural to feel nervous if you belong to a particular religion, faith or culture, or if you exclude certain food groups on ethical or health grounds, such as vegan, vegetarian or gluten-free diets. It’s also true of those who have serious allergies, like egg. You’ll be particular about everything you put in your body – food, drinks, medicines and, of course, vaccines. So let’s look at the COVID-19 vaccine, arms ourselves with the facts and address any concerns you may have.

Collagen is a protein that is very important for your body. It helps keep your skin, hair, nails, muscles, and joints strong and flexible. As you get older, your body makes less collagen, which can lead to wrinkles, thinner hair, and joint pain. Many people use collagen supplements and beauty products, hoping to look younger and feel better. This article explains what collagen is, how it works, the different types, and whether supplements really help. It also shares natural ways to boost your body’s collagen and clears up common myths.

A clinical trial is when treatments or interventions are tested on a sample of people. This assesses safety and effectiveness, and notes any treatment side effects, from the mildest to the most serious. Effectiveness is compared against other interventions or existing products. It is a crucial part of research that, if proven safe and effective, allows new treatments to be safely rolled out on a large scale. It’s a legal requirement, too.

A clinical trial is when treatments or interventions are tested on a sample of people in order to see the safety, effectiveness, side effects of the treatment, and compare how effective they are against other interventions. It is a crucial part of research that, if proven safe and effective, allows new treatments to be safely rolled out on a large scale.

There are several different pathways a pharmacist can choose to go through, which is why it is often a prevalent occupation. All pharmacists have to have completed a pharmacy degree and a pre-registration course to ensure all meet a level of competence. There are three main types of pharmacists: community, hospital, and primary care. The former has the most significant number of pharmacists, whereas the latter has the least. However, now more so there has been an increase in the number of primary care pharmacists in GP practices in recent years.

There is no clear evidence that having a glass or two of alcohol after your vaccine has a negative effect on how well your vaccine works, or makes you feel any worse.

Burns can happen in a second, and it’s important to act fast to prevent further injury and reduce the risk of scarring. Minor burns and scalds are fairly common, with hot water from pans, kettles or the bath as top of the list, and fireworks when celebrations come around. Burns typically affect the hands, forearms and face, or the lower legs or bottom when young children get in a very hot bath. Sunburn also counts as a burn. Take burns seriously, even if there isn’t much to see initially – it can take some time for the skin to react and deep pain to set in, but the skin has been traumatised, and the process of injury continues unless it is cooled and treated. What different types of burn are there? Burns are classified according to the depth and extent of the skin damage, and their treatment depends on how severe they are. There are three main types; First-degree (superficial) burns - the skin is red, painful and very sensitive to touch. The damaged skin may be slightly moist from fluid leaking from the deeper layers, and sunburn is a good example of such a burn. Second-degree (partial thickness) burns. Here, the damage is more serious, and blisters usually appear on the skin, which is still painful and sensitive. Third-degree (full-thickness) burns. The most severe type of burn, in which the tissues in all layers of the skin are dead, so there are typically no blisters on the skin. The burned surface can appear white, black (charred), or bright red from blood at the bottom of the wound. Because the skin nerves are damaged, these burns can be surprisingly painless and lack sensation when touched. Specialist treatment with skin grafts are often required for severely damaged areas, and these types of burns are often life-threatening if enough of the body is burnt.