Israeli teenagers flock to Covid vaccine clinics in bid to save exams

A teenager receives a vaccination against the coronavirus disease

Credit: Reuters

It was a familiar scene in the country with the world’s fastest vaccinations drive: Ariel Wilfand went to his local clinic in Jerusalem and within five minutes had received his first Covid jab.

But Ariel, who came to the clinic with his father, is no frail octogenarian. He’s a teenager, one of thousands being vaccinated by Israel as they sit important exams in the weeks to come.

"I feel good," said the 17-year-old after receiving his first dose of the Covid vaccine. "I want life to go back to normal as quickly as possible so I’m very hopeful.”

"This is the one thing I’m really pleased about this year," Ariel said of the country’s lightning-speed inoculations campaign, which has already given the first jab to more than a quarter of the population.

Or, an 18-year-old teenager, receives a dose of the Pfizer-BioNtech COVID-19 coronavirus vaccine at Clalit Health Services

Credit: Jack Guez/Jack Guez

He added that he will encourage his friends to get the vaccine as well, in the hopes that they can go out rock-climbing and possibly enjoy a holiday in Thailand this summer 

Israel’s bagrut exams, which are broadly equivalent to British A-Levels, are often a deciding factor in a pupil’s career and university prospects. 

Over the weekend, the vaccination programme was extended to include 16 to 18-year-olds, reducing the risk of Covid outbreaks as they sit the exams in school halls. It may also reassure youngsters who are concerned about catching the virus before they report for national service. 

Israeli officials hope to partially reopen schools in the near future, but are concerned about children being particularly susceptible to the new UK strain of coronavirus. 

The Israeli model is likely to raise questions as to whether the UK should adopt a similar policy to prevent older pupils from falling behind in their studies.

Shani Luvaton, a nurse at the Clalit clinic where Ariel had his first dose, said several hundred teenagers turned up for their jabs on Saturday night, just hours after the policy was announced.

Coronavirus Israel Spotlight Chart — Cases default

"I think what got them really interested is that [after they have been fully vaccinated] they won’t need to go into quarantine," she said. "I don’t think that they are too worried about missing exams."

Ms Luvaton said 16 to 18-year-olds did not necessarily need an appointment at clinics run by Clalit, one of four healthcare providers in Israel, which may encourage more people to come forward.

But not all teenagers are delighted by the prospect of sitting their exams without delay.

Maor, 17, said the closure of schools and the move to online teaching had made it more difficult to prepare for them.

"If I could choose I would delay the exams [until] things are back to normal. You can’t do it all through Zoom," he said, referring to the video conference app used by his teachers.

His friend Oshri, also 17, said he was more excited about being able to spend time with family once everyone was protected from coronavirus.

"I wanted to get the vaccine because my father is 70 and is in the at-risk population,” he said. “I’m doing it for him."