 JANUARY 14 • 2021 | 13

according to Zenlea, includes 
the participants’ option to 
become unblinded, which 
means they can be told if they 
received the vaccine or the 
placebo in the trial if they want 
to. For those who received the 
placebo, they will be offered 
the Moderna vaccine that same 
day. For those who received 
the vaccine as part of their 
participation in the study, they 
won’t be offered anything since 
they’re already vaccinated. The 
unblinding process began Jan. 
6, and includes bringing in 
700+ participants, which could 
take a month or two.
Zenlea received her first 
dose of the Pfizer vaccine, the 
only COVID vaccine currently 
being offered to Henry Ford 
employees, on New Year’s Eve.
“It was incredible to receive 
the vaccine on the last day of 
2020,
” Zenlea said. “Brought 
everything full-circle.
”

VACCINE TRIAL
Moses Fridman, a resident of 
West Bloomfield, is currently 
a participant in the HFHS 
Moderna trial. When the 
pandemic started, Fridman 

was hopeful there would be a 
trial in the area, wanting to do 
anything he could to help. 
“I’m not a physician or a 
public health professional, but 

I saw this as an opportunity 
to do something against the 
pandemic, more than just 
staying home and wearing a 
mask,” Fridman said. 
Fridman volunteered for 
the Moderna trial and was 
accepted, eventually going 
to Henry Ford Hospital in 
September to fill out the 
consent forms and the intake 
questionnaire as well as take 
part in the double-blinded 
injection process. 
Fridman said he didn’t 
have much reaction to the 
first injection, just a sore arm. 
He got his second injection 
a month later, again feeling 
the sore arm, but then for the 
next half-a-day or so, he felt 
“rotten.”
“I felt nauseous and had 
chills and a nasty headache,” 
Fridman said. “So, I took an 
ibuprofen, laid down and took 
a nap. By nighttime, I was 
feeling close to normal again 
and by the next day I was 
feeling normal.” 
While Fridman didn’t 
know if he received the trial 
vaccine or the placebo, his 
curiosity got the best of him, 
and he went to Kroger and 
paid out-of-pocket to get a 
rapid antibody test. The test 
eventually came back positive 
for the IGG antibody, which 
indicates an individual may 
have had the virus in the 
recent past and which may 
protect an individual from 
future infection. 
Because of the mixture of 
the minor side effects and the 
result of the antibody testing, 
Fridman, although not certain, 
believes he received the 
vaccine and not the placebo. 
While that may be the 
case, Fridman said he’s not 
in a hurry to get unblinded 
because if he indeed got the 
vaccine, he realizes his data is 
more valuable to the study if 
he stays blinded and continues 
practicing the safe measures of 

masking and social distancing 
for a longer period. 
Michigan currently ranks 
40th in vaccine administration 
among all states, according 
to data from the U.S. 
Centers for Disease Control 
and Prevention. Statewide 
inoculation is still a ways off.
Fridman said he’s proud to 
help in any way and would 
encourage others to get the 

vaccine when it’s available to 
them. 
“
A half a day of mild 
to moderate discomfort 
compared to the risks of what 
can happen if you get COVID, 
I think I think it’s almost a 
no-brainer.” 

Do you know other COVID “vaccine 

heroes” for the Jewish News to profile? 

Let us know: letters@thejewishnews.

com.

“OUR GOAL IS TO GET AS MANY 

SHOTS IN ARMS AS POSSIBLE.”

— DR. BETTY CHU, HENRY FORD HEALTH SYSTEM

What You Need to Know 
About the Vaccine 
The state of Michigan is rolling out the vaccine in 
phases and in order of those deemed most at-risk, 
including the fi
 rst groups to receive the vaccine, which 
were healthcare workers and long-term care residents 
and staf
 .
The state moved to a new phase of vaccination 
Jan. 11. The new vaccination phase includes anyone 
over age 65 and frontline essential workers, including 
police of
 cers, fi
 rst responders, frontline state and fed-
eral workers, jail and prison staf
 , as well as teachers of 
grades pre-K-12 and childcare providers.
Dr. Betty Chu, HFHS Associate Chief Clinical Of
 cer 
and Chief Quality Of
 cer, says HFHS is opening four 
clinic sites and two mass vaccination sites this week in 
accordance with the new vaccination phases.
Chu says there will be a couple of channels for peo-
ple to receive the vaccine once it becomes widely 
available, including the health system and community 
health department, but urges patience. 
“We’re talking about millions of people, and the infra-
structure to vaccinate that many people is being built 
at the same time the infrastructure in the healthcare 
system is already very busy treating COVID patients,” 
Chu said. “We’ll probably be tapping into volunteer 
workforces to assist us with the ef
 orts because our 
goal is to get as many shots in arms as possible and to 
really help the population get out of this pandemic.”

Moses Fridman

COURTESY OF MOSES FRIDMAN

