Johannesburg – I’m overdue for a prostrate examination.
Purely on medical advice, any man on the wrong side of 40 should visit a doctor for a prostrate exam. Prostrate cancer is common among men my age and above and I’ve known about this for years.
However, I’ve somehow managed to postpone this procedure because I’ve heard it includes a doctor shoving their hand up my anus, a prospect that leaves me cringing and blushing.
The pandemic has also given me the excuse to indefinitely postpone this crucial and potentially life-saving procedure. At the beginning of the pandemic, all healthcare workers’ hands had to be on Covid-19 deck and hospitals were advised to free the beds and postpone minor procedures.
Okay, let me stop piffling and admit that I’m just scared of doing the right thing.
This is my roundabout way of gett ing to the vaccine hesitancy that’s gripping many men in our country.
After a spluttering start, the government managed to procure millions of vaccines to inoculate enough people to achieve herd immunity that will return the country to socio-economic normalcy by the end of the year.
However, it emerged this week that men in particular are hesitant to go for a jab. In fact, when the first vaccines arrived in February, a study by Ask Afrika Covid-19 Tracker showed that women were more likely to take the vaccine than men.
The study showed that on the whole, men held a “significantly” higher sense of distrust towards the vaccine than women.
Now the authorities are scratching their heads to find creative ways to entice us to vaccinate.
I posit here without fear or favour that men are just scared of the needle. A man will rather wait until their penis is about to fall off from a sexually transmitted infection before visiting their local clinic. Women routinely visit clinics as a necessity.
We were told from the outset that vaccination will not be mandatory and those who, for whatever reason, did not want a jab, will not be coerced.
However, at home and abroad, employers and businesses are mulling measures to exclude the unvaccinated.
A vaccination report card will soon be your ticket to enter a restaurant, night club and stadium, while for those lucky to hold a job will find themselves on the streets if they insist on not vaccinating.
We knew the vaccines to stem the wrath of the pandemic were coming, but now that they are here, many are gett ing cold feet. I will also be going for that prostrate exam soon.
Let’s do the right thing and save lives.
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