I volunteered for vaccine study to help end COVID-19
I’m a health care worker, husband, father, grandfather, African American and member of the LGBTQ community with a mission that is to be a helper, always.
I start every day catching up on local and national news. And every morning, despite the tragedies that beset 2020, I am steadfast in my personal desire to be positive and to help more than I hurt society.
I’m a health care worker in a pandemic. More specifically, I’m a pediatrician and expert in data science and health information technology – but those are only two of my roles.
More fundamentally, I’m a husband, father, grandfather, African American, and member of the LGBTQ community.
My mission is to be a helper, always. My instinct throughout this pandemic is a continuous state of call to action. The torrent of responses to George Floyd’s death distilled what I see as a calling in 2020.
How I decided to help people understand COVID-19’S impact
I’ve scouted ways to be hands on, safely, to help explain the impact of COVID-19 to people, including the African American community, who are skeptical.
My family and I use our social media platforms to magnify essential messages.
My podcast, Informatics in the Round , pivoted. I explored big data and artificial intelligence; now it’s the pandemic. I talk to experts (and songwriters) about mask-wearing, COVID-19 research, and finding trustworthy information.
I planned to give blood to mitigate the national blood supply shortage. Unfortunately, restrictions prevent most gay couples from donating.
From my perches in life, I know how common it is for communities to feel on the fringe. At best overlooked; at worst discriminated against. That’s not good for society, and it’s harmful in a pandemic. Prosperity depends on people willing to step forward – to say or do what’s necessary to propel their community forward.
As a Black physician at Vanderbilt University Medical Center I was — and am — compelled by duty to do more. In August 2020, my husband and I joined Moderna’s vaccine trial — what we considered a personal public service for the communities we serve.
Enrolling in the vaccine study was an easy decision
Vaccine studies are very safe. Fellow participants and I understood the risks were low. As with any new vaccine or therapeutic, rare events might occur. That’s why scientists study big populations.
That’s partly why my husband and I wanted to enroll: our participation would improve the study’s validity — perhaps even add depth to medicine’s insight about how the vaccine impacts Black people.
The significance of showing up as a willing — a voluntary — participant in a medical trial as an African American man is not lost on me. Enrolling was an easy decision. I’m helping society get back to some semblance of normal and I’m leading by example. We all have to do that.
The trial was incredibly well run. Enrollment and on-boarding was virtual. Then after a two-hour visit with the study team, I received the first injection of either the vaccine or a saltwater placebo. I logged symptoms into a simple app and did phone check-ins.
The thorniest part, for me, were the blood draws. Getting blood from a turnip is easier than drawing it from my veins! Even so, my presence in the trial mattered too much for something as small as a needle to stop me. The four or so blood draws are a small price to pay to help society build immunity.
No symptoms followed my first injection. However, after my second injection a month later, I had a mild fever (100 degrees), some underarm gland tenderness, and skin redness and swelling at the injection site. I felt more tired than usual. The study team reassured me during this whole process. By the third day, all symptoms disappeared and I’ve been fine since.
The vaccine is so important to all of us
It’s probable I received the vaccine because I had side effects; I will know for sure soon. I’ll keep being monitored for side effects and providing blood for analysis even though the vaccine is now available.
It’s an honor to be among the thousands who banded together to test the effectiveness of these vaccines. I would do it again for all the people I hold dear: my husband, our children, my parents, my friends, our patients, and our world. The vaccine is that important.
My call to action for you is, help me dispel myths by being informed, getting this vaccine, and telling everybody. We’re in this pandemic together and it will take every one of us to put the pandemic behind us in 2021. We have a lot of life to live!
Kevin B. Johnson, MD, MS, is the Cornelius Vanderbilt Professor and chair of biomedical informatics and professor of pediatrics and informatician-in-chief of Vanderbilt University Medical Center.