I mostly keep this space for art only and just post and go, but want to share this thing I’m part of since I’ve had people asking me about it on Twitter. I’ve been open on Twitter about being a phase one covid-19 vaccine human test subject for Kaiser Permanente and Moderna. Now the trial I’m in has opened a registry for people who are interested in testing the vaccine to join. There are two registries, one for people in the Seattle-area and a national (USA) one.
While I’m just an artist and can’t answer any scientific or technical questions about the vaccine, I can talk about my experience of being in phase one of the trial so far.
I applied when I found the call for applicants by luck on Twitter back in early March, and I just so happen to live close enough to the trial clinic to walk there. I went through a standard physical checkup and questionnaire about my health, and they checked all my health records to make sure I was a good candidate for the test vaccine, (as one of the very first people getting the test vaccine they had to make sure I was 100% healthy and had no pre-existing conditions whatsoever). They made sure I understood everything they were going to do and that I knew I could leave the trial at any time for any reason. I got the first injection on March 17th and the second on April 14th. I don’t know what amount of micrograms I was given, (25, 100, or 250) but I’m sure I could ask. I filled out a paper form for a week after each injection and detailed any symptoms or lack of symptoms. I had no symptoms except for some pain around the injection site the first time, (comparable to the pain of a tetanus shot) and had the same pain + a mild fever and chills after the second, (which was gone after a night of sleep). I’ve gone in regularly for them to take blood samples so the scientists can see how the vaccine is working in me. I’ve mostly interacted with nurse practitioners and have only met the head of the study, Dr. Lisa Jackson, once before so she could answer questions. Everyone has been extremely nice, professional, and personable. I’ll be in the trial for 14 months total, and I am not allowed travel outside the United States during that time or donate any blood. Also if anything happens to me, (like if I really sick, even if it’s not covid related, or get in an accident or get injured) I have to let them know as soon as possible.
Anyway, all that is to say the vaccine trial so far hasn’t been so scary! And it claims to be having promising results, which I’m really excited about as a believer in science. If anyone has questions about the trial, my ask box is open. Again I can only answer based on my personal experience since I’m not a scientist, and I want to avoid spreading any misinformation about something so important. There’s actually a lot of good info about this study out there, (I’ll link some articles below) and I don’t have any special insider knowledge beyond what’s been put out there.
If you’re interested in joining the registry to potentially become a covid-19 vaccine human test subject, here’s some links to sign up:
Seattle-area registry: https://corona.kpwashingtonresearch.org/
National (USA) registry: https://coronaviruspreventionnetwork.org/
And articles / more info:
Kaiser/Moderna trial update from 7/22
Moderna’s vaccine trial timeline in progress
Dr. Lisa Jackson’s Preliminary Report from 7/14
The Coronavirus Vaccine Is on Track to Be the Fastest Ever Developed, by The New Yorker from 5/22
A COVID-19 vaccine will work only if trials include Black participants, experts say, by NBCNews from 6/17 (not Moderna trial related, but still extremely important)
Phase 3 COVID-19 vaccine trials start at Emory, giving Atlantans a potential shot at immunity, by Atlanta Magazine from 7/23 (this one answers a lot of great questions!!!)