The CEO of Howard University Hospital, a major health care provider for the African American community in Washington, DC, was well aware that his employees and staff had reservations about the vaccine. And that notion scared her.
An in-hospital hospital survey of about 350 employees in early November found that 70% were unwilling to take the vaccine or would not take it immediately after it became available.
Even his own management team hesitated. “I’ll take it if you take it,” some members told him.
“I said,‘ I’ll be happy to catch it first, ’” Jenkins told CNN.
Thus, Jenkins received the first dose of the Pfizer vaccine on December 15 in front of the cameras to instill confidence in the vaccine among its staff, becoming the last high-profile healthcare professional to take that step.
Relieving the fears of his employees has been a slow process, but Jenkins said he is optimistic.
Howard University Hospital received 725 doses of the Pfizer vaccine on its first shipment, and more vaccines were expected this week. So far, the hospital said more than 350 employees have received the vaccine from about 2,300 employees, residents and contractors working there.
The numbers, though low, exceeded expectations, Jenkins said. He added that the hospital expects to run out of its initial 725 doses “well ahead of schedule”.
Trust has been a slow process
The Jenkins measure is part of a widespread effort by community leaders and health care experts to combat vaccine vaccination among blacks and Latin Americans, a problem especially urgent given the disproportionate weight the virus has borne on these communities.
Of these people, most said they were worried about possible side effects; half were worried about getting Covid-19 to get the vaccine; and 48% said they were generally suspicious of vaccines.
Colored communities have “every right to be nervous,” Jenkins said.
“It’s not an American experiment on black people,” Jenkins said. “This is a global pandemic with a global vaccine as a solution to the thousands of deaths.”
Ever since she learned that so many staff at Howard University Hospital still didn’t feel comfortable taking the vaccine, Jenkins said she and her team have been asking questions and answers to address people’s concerns.
He has also been personally answering employees ’questions: could they get Covid-19 from the vaccine? What were the side effects? Was it safe for pregnant women? What about nursing mothers? What about those who were trying to get pregnant?
“I personally felt responsible for helping people not only through misunderstandings, but also for misinformation, and for helping them in their fears,” Jenkins said.
The messages have continued even after taking the vaccine: do you experience any side effects? (Nothing but a sore arm on the first day.) What about 48 hours later? (I still feel good.) What happens a week later? (He is doing well).
That so many black and brown people, even those she has never met, come to her with her fears and worries has been humiliating, Jenkins said. And it’s a reminder of the importance of the vaccine to experts and professionals who look like the communities they serve.
“I hope they trust us more because we can relate,” Jenkins said. “I hope they see us as one of them.”
Other black leaders have done the same
Dr. Valerie Montgomery Rice recently sent a similar message to black Americans.
Rice also empathized with the concerns of some black Americans about the nation’s history of racism in medicine. But he insisted he would not recommend a vaccine he did not trust.
“We’re in the rooms where it’s happening,” Rice said. “So we clearly won’t go against ourselves. Because we understand how critical this is for Black America and Latin America that have been disproportionately impacted by the virus.”
Morehouse is historically located among black colleges and universities, black brotherhoods and fraternities, and prominent black pastors leading national efforts to remove the stigma surrounding the Covid-19 vaccine.
Other key pillars of black communities, such as barbershops and hairdressing salons, have also played a key role in the conversation. Stephen Thomas, a professor of health policy and management at the University of Maryland in College Park, hosts Zoom town halls, where doctors and scientists teach about the vaccine to barbers, stylists and their clients in Maryland.
The effort is part of the Thomas Health Advocates In-Reach and Research initiative, or HAIR, which offers cancer testing at barbershops and hair salons.
“Barbers and stylists have confidence,” Thomas said. “It’s a big problem, it’s a family affair. It’s a place where blacks come together in all their socioeconomic divisions.”
CNN’s Nicquel Terry Ellis contributed to this report.