ISLAND OF WADMALAW – Health professionals enthusiastically filled their posts as hundreds of cars pulled up outside St. James Bethel AME Church on March 21. more rural communities.
The majority of residents on Wadmalaw Island, a small community of about 3,000 people near Johns Island, are black, according to census data. So, with 500 doses of Moderna vaccine in hand, Dr. Youlando Gibbs said she saw the vaccination event as crucial.
Gibbs, CEO and founder of Palmetto Palace, a nonprofit organization that takes a bus-based health clinic to underprivileged communities, said it could very well be done with mass vaccination events outside major cities like Charleston, Columbia and Mount Pleasant.
“Existing disparities make it essential that we deliberately and purposefully partner with these churches in rural areas to go out and meet people where they are,” said Gibbs, who worked with Roper St. Francis to distribute the vaccines.
The vaccination event brings a much needed dose of hope to residents of Wadmalaw Island, especially as the coronavirus continues to disproportionately affect minority populations. Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that African Americans are four times more likely to be hospitalized and almost three times more likely to die from COVID-19 compared to white patients.
Rev. Williams Jones directs traffic during the vaccination event for the Palmetto Palace mobile health unit at New Saint James-Bethel AME Church on Sunday, March 21, 2021 on Wadmalaw Island. Andrew J. Whitaker / Staff
Health officials and doctors are still trying to overcome the decades of mistrust that has formed among some black Americans and public health agencies after historic examples of mistreatment and abuse.
Jennifer Sterret, a clinical pharmacist at Roper St. Frances who has helped with vaccination efforts, said it is important to recognize the past and try to build a better future by providing access to care and information in rural parts of the state.
“They have reason to be skeptical about this long history,” said Sterret. “It means a lot to us to build the trust of the African American community.”
In December, the state Department of Health and Environmental Control released a formal vaccination plan that states that it wants to “involve critical, vulnerable and potentially needy populations to obtain high acceptance of the vaccine through a strategic communication campaign carried out by influencers reliable”.
This involved promoting online videos featuring US Democratic Representative Jim Clyburn, Columbia Mayor Stephen K. Benjamin, and South Carolina music artist Darius Rucker, encouraging people to adhere to safety guidelines.
But it also meant partnering with community leaders, like Dr. Gibbs, and churches, like St. James Bethel AME, to reach black South Carolina residents.
Rev. William R. Jones, the pastor of St. James, said he encouraged his parishioners to attend the event and get the vaccine himself.
“I have already taken my two photos to serve as an example to my parishioners,” said Jones. “Although some people are reluctant, I think part of that feeling is going away.”
Vaccines were prioritized for those with prior appointment. But then the clinic was opened to residents who lived in Wadmalaw or to anyone who managed to survive in the queue. Rows of cars stretched along Rosebank Road while the people of South Carolina waited to receive their dose.
Marsha McCoy, a kindergarten teacher at West Ashley, said she was excited about her second dose so she could “dance and listen to live music”.
Others, like Emily Campbell, a 73-year-old resident of Wadmalaw Island, said she was looking forward to Sunday dinners and the Fourth of July celebration with her family. But she was also anxious and hopes to be able to come back to life.
“I was worried about getting it for three months, but it didn’t even hurt,” she said. “I can’t wait for the second. I’m still going to be suspicious, because I want to be safe.”
Leroy McGill wears his shirt after receiving his vaccine by Lidie Collier, RN, during the vaccination event of the Palmetto Palace mobile health unit at New Saint James-Bethel AME Church on Sunday, March 21, 2021 on Wadmalaw Island. Andrew J. Whitaker / Staff
Leroy McGill, a Wadmalaw native who now lives on Johns Island, said getting the first chance was a “sigh of relief”.
Dr. Gibbs said she was also able to breathe a sigh of relief when the vaccines they brought that day ran out.
However, the Department of Health and Environmental Control provided Palmetto Palace with 2,000 doses of the Modern vaccine and 100 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine for use in a variety of community events.
So, for Dr. Gibbs, the job is far from over.
Catch up Thomas Novelly at 843-937-5713. Follow him @TomNovelly on Twitter.