Shakeya Bean, LPN, a nurse in VUMC’s Urology practice, appears in a just-released national public service announcement (PSA) produced by the American Hospital Association to encourage people to get vaccinated for COVID.
In the PSA, Bean is one of three health care providers — one physician and two nurses — who speak directly to the camera. She says: “I’m a nurse, but I’m also a daughter. That’s why I got the COVID-19 vaccine. It’s proven to be extremely effective against the spread of the virus.”
She agreed to appear in the PSA after hearing about it from a co-worker whose mother knew somebody in the production company.
Bean said she didn’t hesitate to participate in the education effort.
“It was a no-brainer,” she said. “It was to create awareness of the COVID vaccine.”
She said that experience working at testing facilities before a vaccine was available was one of the motivators to encourage others to get vaccinated.
Early in the pandemic, Bean volunteered to work on the front lines at one of VUMC’s COVID testing facilities, and continued that work even after her house was severely damaged in the March 2020, tornado that struck Nashville. She also worked for a time at the citywide testing facility at Nissan Stadium.
She said that experience working at testing facilities before a vaccine was available was one of the motivators to encourage others to get vaccinated.
Now that she has moved back to her job in Urology, as well as also working some hours at VUMC’s Belle Meade Walk-In Clinic, she sees another side of the pandemic — patients who continue to deal with the effects of a COVID infection.
“It’s seeing what they’re dealing with post-COVID and knowing that it doesn’t have to be this way,” she said.
Talking with patients has helped her understand why some people might be reluctant to get a vaccine and has helped her talk through some of their concerns. Her personal situation allows her to speak from experience, as well; as an African American, she is aware of the reluctance of some African Americans to get vaccinated, and as an expectant mother, she is aware that some women of childbearing age are concerned about the vaccine’s effect on fertility.
To the first point, she said she wants to show herself as a positive example: “I’m African American, I got the vaccine, I’m fine.”
As for the fertility concerns: “I got the vaccine in February and found out I was pregnant in May,” she said.
The 30-second PSA may be viewed here at the AHA site or here on YouTube.
