Transcription:
The First COVID Vaccine on the Outer Banks

Caitlin Whyte (Host): The Outer Banks Hospital and Medical Group received their first shipment of the COVID vaccine on Friday, December 18th. While we all know it will be months before vaccines are administered across the community, receiving the vaccine and being able to administer it to frontline healthcare workers is a milestone in the effort to combat the pandemic. Dr. Dan Dwyer joins us today to talk all about the vaccine. He is Chief of Staff at the Outer Banks Hospital and Lead Provider at Outer Banks Woman's Care in Nags Head.

This is Outerbanks Health. I'm your host, Caitlin Whyte. So, Dr. Dwyer, the development of vaccines against infectious disease is responsible for a life expectancy today that is almost double that of our ancestors. How is the COVID-19 vaccine, you know, part of this development?

Dan Dwyer, MD (Guest): Well, it seems like it's just the next step. We're using a, this a novel virus and it's a novel approach that this messenger RNA vaccine was developed for. But I look at this a little bit like the, like a basketball player who's making a free throw for the end of the NCAA tournament, and that is done and looks easy because of the years and hours of practice to get it done at that time. So the, the development of this vaccine or the basic framework of the ability to develop the vaccine is just the next step on the long line of medical research.

Host: So, we received the first shipment of the COVID vaccine on Friday. Can you tell us what happens now? Who gets them first?

Dr. Dwyer: Well, I am now three days into my, my injection and I became a little bit of a celebrity when I was the first one locally to get the vaccine. And as the Chief of Staff, that's what I, what I did. And lots of jokes from friends and family, and lots of love coming out. And as a frontline worker and as a representative of the hospital, I was first and our frontline people include everybody in our hospital because even though the nurses and the doctors are the faces of medical care; for every doctor and nurse you see there's two or three other people who are behind the scenes getting it happening. And so, all of our frontline people have an opportunity to take the vaccine and that's job one. And we'll be doing that in the next week or so.

Host: So what does it feel like now a few days out? Do you have any side effects?

Dr. Dwyer: Well, I haven't grown any new parts or lost any of the ones that I have so I think I'm okay. Yeah. This is not the, uh, this is not the first time that I've been, uh, felt a little bit like a Guinea pig. It's a, uh, when I was in medical school, the new hepatitis vaccine at that time was a new technology called recombinant DNA. And the, at that time, it's now becoming the standard, but at that time it was not, it was novel at the, you know, if you remember the eighties, that's when actually Dr. Fauci was young and the fields of genetics and immunology were really taking off in response to the HIV, at that point AIDS crisis. So, you know, at that time I was given the opportunity to take it, and they said that they said that I didn't have to take it. But I wouldn't be allowed in the hospital if I didn't.

So as a, as a young medical student, I thought it was probably reasonable to take it. And so, uh, and everything turned out fine then. And so far so good. I have, uh, I've had a normal weekend and feeling fine from my vaccine.

Host: That's good to hear.

Dr. Dwyer: Yeah.

Host: Now the Corona virus is novel, but pandemics aren't new. Science has been researching and planning for pandemics for a while now. Tell us more about the vaccine we received and how it was created.

Dr. Dwyer: You know, what science has been doing is basically is allowing us, instead of historically, when you did a vaccine, oftentimes if you look back to polio and measles and all the vaccines that have come along, oftentimes you would get an inactivated virus to stimulate your immune system. But what science has done now is basically we're getting the building blocks that allow us to, from my best understanding, of course, you should not get your immunology and infectious disease advice from an OB GYN. But my understanding is the, this is the next step.

And, and right now my body is building both the ability to make an antibody or antibodies against the identifying protein of the virus, but it's also stimulating the production of specialized cells that can also help protect me if and when I'm exposed to the virus. So, that's pretty dramatic and I'm not getting any of the virus itself to do that. These are basically the building blocks that have been, that been mapped out by our technologies, which is amazing.

Host: Are the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines, do you know, are they pretty similar in how they work?

Dr. Dwyer: They're very similar in how they work, but the way that they are kind of, I guess, a big difference that I'm, that my understanding is, is I think the Moderna will be, might be easier to transport. So, the process of getting, uh, you know, and we've heard this in our world saying, you know, the Amazons of the world, it's the last mile, you know, the, when you took where the virus came, you know, where it started, uh, two weeks ago to get into my arm on Friday was a testament to, uh, technology and, and planning. But it's the last mile. And so that I think the vaccines are going to work similarly in your body. But I think the process of getting that last mile will be different between the two vaccines. That's my understanding of that.

Host: Okay. So it typically takes a few weeks for the body to produce these memory cells after getting the vaccine. Can you still get COVID in that like meantime?

Dr. Dwyer: Certainly, you know, and actually if you, once you do, you know that, getting the vaccine is one point in time. And so a lot of times, you know, I could have actually, technically, even though I'm screened every day, like I might've been exposed a day before and you wouldn't even know, I think it would help my body's response to it, no matter what it is, but I don't think my understanding is that the it's going to be a head start for my immune system, which will make me less likely to end up in an ICU, make me less likely to die of the disease. But I do not know, and I don't think anybody thinks that it would protect me from actually getting the virus so I can, so I would, I would get the virus and the question becomes whether or not when I have the virus, am I still infectious to somebody else?

And we just have to assume that that's going to be true. And so the, the vaccine is, might be the most important tool in our toolbox to fight this, but it's only part of it. So, we are not going to use the vaccine like it's a shield, just like, um, we're advocating to people who have had a history of COVID don't use having had the disease as a shield. These things are enhanced immune systems as part of the tools, but it's still wearing a mask, washing hands. And, you know, we wash hands almost continuously. Our protocol is, is tight and that's what we're going to continue to do and also social distancing. So, it's just part an important part, but, it's the whole tool set that's going to help us get through this.

Host: Now, with all these excitement around the vaccine and the rollout, I mean, what is the ultimate goal of the vaccinations?

Dr. Dwyer: The vaccine helps our bodies develop immunity to the virus that causes COVID-19 without us having to actually get the illness. With all types of vaccines the body's left with a supply of memory cells that remember how to fight the virus in the future. The Moderna and the Pfizer vaccines are specifically built that way.

Host: And like we've been discussing, healthcare workers are of course among the first to receive this vaccine. But when do you think it will be available to the community at large?

Dr. Dwyer: I think the community at large would probably be the, the last group. I think the next group would be those at highest risk within our communities. You know, the, the one target population are those that are in the nursing homes, or we call it a SNIFs here on the radio. And that means skilled nursing facility. And then we will also then be hitting those that are at the most vulnerable, but I'm hopeful that sometime in the next several months that we'll have enough vaccine and different types that will allow all those who wish to be vaccinated to get vaccines.

Host: And as we wrap up here, just remind us again, why is this vaccine so important if we have any listeners who might still be on the fence?

Dr. Dwyer: Again, it's the most important tool in our toolbox. The ability to have within our bodies, a head start to prevent severe illness, that I could not think of anything that's more important. So, even if there's one person who's on the fence, who is wondering whether or not they should, or they shouldn't, I am advocating this for myself as I've already taken it. My staff, all the people who work with me, my family, my friends, I think, um, and only because I live in the world where we see the effect of the severely ill, and if we can prevent that, we should do everything in our power to do so.

Host: Well, thank you so much for taking the time to be with us, Dr. Dwyer, and for sharing this vital information. Remember to continue with the recommended safety measures of masking, social distancing, and washing your hands frequently. Until the vaccine is widely available, it's the best defense against contracting the virus. If you found this podcast helpful, please share it on your social channels and check out the full podcast library for topics of interest to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it./podcasts. This has been Outerbanks Health. I'm your host, Caitlin Whyte. Thanks for listening.