Laurier alumnus talks new variants, boosters and where we go from here on Staying Golden podcast

Jan. 18, 2022

Elan Tsarfati (BA '04), a clinical medical microbiologist at Forth Valley Royal Hospital in Larbert, Scotland and a fellow of the Royal College of Pathologists in London, England, joined a special edition of Laurier Alumni’s Staying Golden Podcast to share his thoughts on the Omicron variant and how this newest COVID-19 wave can help us learn how to deal with the virus going forward.  

The discussion was a follow-up to the August 2021 Inspiring Conversations event, where Tsarfati joined other specialists to discuss the state of COVID-19 research. 

“A few months ago, it felt like Delta was here to stay,” said Tsarfati in the podcast. “I thought we were doing a good job of learning to live with it in terms of balancing our restrictions with our protective measures. Now Omicron has changed everything.”  

Tsarfati also offered insight regarding the effectiveness of vaccines against severe illness and hospitalization. 

“You are more likely to be admitted [to the hospital] if you have Omicron, even if you were double vaccinated, but there's reassuring data that demonstrates that if you recently had your second dose of your vaccine or you've recently been boosted with any of the vaccines, you are more likely not to be admitted to the hospital.” 

The discussion, along with the rest of the Staying Golden Podcast series, can be found on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher and RSS. The Staying Golden Podcast is presented by the Wilfrid Laurier University Alumni Association.