As all COVID restrictions are removed in England this week, spare a thought for the estimated half a million people who have a severely weakened immune system and who are now terrified that their lives are being put at risk.

For individuals who are immunocompromised due to conditions such as leukaemia, advanced HIV and recent organ transplants, a return to ‘normal’ is not an option as they are at the highest risk for severe illness or death from COVID-19. Although immunosuppression conditions vary, many of those affected also have lower levels of antibodies after coronavirus vaccination than the general population, leaving them with less protection than those who are vaccinated.

John Kennerley, a 74-year-old retired lecturer from East Sheen suffers from a rare immunocompromised condition called Pituitary Cushing’s Disease and he has rarely left his house since March 2020. Joh told me that his doctors haven’t discussed the risk with him so he is ‘just going to have to live with COVID now’ but he will still avoid unnecessary risk, so he would not go on public transport or walk in busy places. What made his life even more challenging is that his wife had an extreme reaction to her first vaccine and she has been advised by doctors that she should not have any subsequent vaccine for fear of a similar response. So not only is he required to be extra-cautious in is approach  but his wife is also vulnerable due to her unvaccinated status.

Simeon Gilchrist, a 56-year-old lawyer also from East Sheen had a heart transplant in 1988 and so now takes a cocktail of immune suppressant drugs to prevent his body from rejecting the transplanted organ. This means that his immune system doesn’t work and therefore ‘plays straight into the hands of COVID’. He was told by his doctors that COVID was potentially fatal for him so he should stay at home and not see anyone.  Although restrictions are lifted, Simeon’s concern is that COVID is still out there and there is no difference in the way that COVID works and how it might affect him. He pointed out that infection rates in Richmond are higher than in the second lockdown so ‘there is no logic in us behaving as if the pandemic is over ‘ as he is still effectively locked-down. Simeon told me “his risk of death as an immunocompromised person is still 25% -  this as an unacceptable risk and in some ways it’s worse now than before, as people are no longer taking any precautions”.

Now that restrictions are lifted, unlike the rest of his colleagues, Simeon is still unable to go to the office. He acknowledges that he is lucky that he is able to work from home and that ‘everything is possible for him to continue to work with IT’. That said, he can’t actually meet with clients and colleagues so he knows that this makes his working life more challenging.

So what needs to be done now so that immunosuppressed people can go about their lives as safely as possible in this “new normal” world with no restrictions to protect vulnerable people?

Ultimately, immunocompromised people are expected to continue to take extra precautions as they go out in public. They know that COVID is here to stay and they have to continue to protect themselves particularly on public transport and busy indoor spaces, as no one else will. The last word is from Simeon - ‘People like me have always understood that life is fragile and that there is a risk in living’.

As all COVID restrictions are removed in England this week, spare a thought for the estimated half a million people who have a severely weakened immune system and who are now terrified that their lives are being put at risk.

For individuals who are immunocompromised due to conditions such as leukaemia, advanced HIV and recent organ transplants, a return to ‘normal’ is not an option as they are at the highest risk for severe illness or death from COVID-19. Although immunosuppression conditions vary, many of those affected also have lower levels of antibodies after coronavirus vaccination than the general population, leaving them with less protection than those who are vaccinated.

John Kennerley, a 74-year-old retired lecturer from East Sheen suffers from a rare immunocompromised condition called Pituitary Cushing’s Disease and he has rarely left his house since March 2020. Joh told me that his doctors haven’t discussed the risk with him so he is ‘just going to have to live with COVID now’ but he will still avoid unnecessary risk, so he would not go on public transport or walk in busy places. What made his life even more challenging is that his wife had an extreme reaction to her first vaccine and she has been advised by doctors that she should not have any subsequent vaccine for fear of a similar response. So not only is he required to be extra-cautious in is approach  but his wife is also vulnerable due to her unvaccinated status.

Simeon Gilchrist, a 56-year-old lawyer also from East Sheen had a heart transplant in 1988 and so now takes a cocktail of immune suppressant drugs to prevent his body from rejecting the transplanted organ. This means that his immune system doesn’t work and therefore ‘plays straight into the hands of COVID’. He was told by his doctors that COVID was potentially fatal for him so he should stay at home and not see anyone.  Although restrictions are lifted, Simeon’s concern is that COVID is still out there and there is no difference in the way that COVID works and how it might affect him. He pointed out that infection rates in Richmond are higher than in the second lockdown so ‘there is no logic in us behaving as if the pandemic is over ‘ as he is still effectively locked-down. Simeon told me “his risk of death as an immunocompromised person is still 25% -  this as an unacceptable risk and in some ways it’s worse now than before, as people are no longer taking any precautions”.

Now that restrictions are lifted, unlike the rest of his colleagues, Simeon is still unable to go to the office. He acknowledges that he is lucky that he is able to work from home and that ‘everything is possible for him to continue to work with IT’. That said, he can’t actually meet with clients and colleagues so he knows that this makes his working life more challenging.

So what needs to be done now so that immunosuppressed people can go about their lives as safely as possible in this “new normal” world with no restrictions to protect vulnerable people?

Ultimately, immunocompromised people are expected to continue to take extra precautions as they go out in public. They know that COVID is here to stay and they have to continue to protect themselves particularly on public transport and busy indoor spaces, as no one else will. The last word is from Simeon - ‘People like me have always understood that life is fragile and that there is a risk in living’.