When it comes to vaccines, the one thing that most people agree on is that we do not all agree. These days, who gets them, who needs them, and how safe they are, is often the subject of major discord. However, when it comes to the role of clinicians, there is a certain level of communication, trust, and effort that is often needed to go beyond the surface barriers that patients put up, to help them build up vaccine confidence with their patients. The matter runs deep — and no one group is a monolith. To get a better understanding, conversations must be had and positions have to be challenged in order to see if a new level of understanding can be found.
On Nov. 10, BlackDoctor brought together leading clinicians, educators, and public health experts to discuss vaccine safety, awareness, and the importance of building trust within communities at the last of three “Unity in Immunity” panels, powered by Moderna.
Held in Washington, DC, and moderated by BlackDoctor.org‘s Chief Content Officer Kristin Vaughan, the conversation tackled the challenges and opportunities in promoting vaccine confidence across diverse populations. The panelists included: Maranda Ward, MPH, Ed.D., Associate Professor, The George Washington University School of Medicine; Chavon Onumah, MD, MPH, MEd, FACP, Associate Professor of Medicine, The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences; Jamar Slocum, MD, MBA, MPH, Assistant Professor, The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences; and Ms. Hannah Williams, MS, MPH, Senior Center Administrator, Center for Population Health Sciences for Health Equity.
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Framing the Conversation: From Hesitancy to Confidence
Dr. Maranda Ward emphasized the importance of language in healthcare, urging a shift from “vaccine hesitancy” to “building vaccine confidence.” She explained, “Language is power — language actually frames the entire interaction. We want to foster rapport and relationships between patients and their clinicians, not label them as non-compliant.”
The panelists also acknowledged that skepticism around vaccines, especially post-COVID-19, is rooted in historical and ongoing issues of trust. Dr. Jamar Slocum noted, “We are expecting a group of people to believe in institutions that were not developed and built for their benefit. Our job as professionals is to empathize with them, to understand where they’re coming from.”
Dr. Chavon Onumah highlighted the need for open, nonjudgmental conversations: “I just want to make sure that [patients] are making an informed decision. Storytelling is really important too — meeting people where they are and relating to them.”
Hannah Williams pointed out that while many of us were introduced to immunizations as young students, we need to think of it as something longterm. We need to reframe vaccination as an ongoing process, not just a childhood milestone: “Vaccination is the first step to building an immunization against whatever the vaccine was for… as I age, there are different things that I may become exposed to that I also have to build immunization for.”
Community-Led Solutions and Peer Support
The panelists also agreed and stressed that there was value in community engagement and peer-to-peer education. In fact, it is not always that underrepresented communities aren’t informed or knowledgeable, it can be the approach or method used towards members of the community that fails to build trust or respect.
Dr. Ward explained that, “The community is already educated. That’s why they don’t trust you, right? Because you’re coming in like, ‘Oh look, I got what you need.’ Actually, we know what we need. You have a seat and learn something.”
Dr. Onumah agreed, adding that it really is on clinicians to take that time to ask questions and get to know what the perspective of the patients or their community members are. She added, “The relationship building is going to be my take home. Once we lose hope, then we have lost the battle.”
A Unified Message: Caring and Collaboration
Throughout the discussion, the importance of caring, collaboration, and humility was clear. As Dr. Slocum concluded, “We all have a role and that role may be different. We all have an important role to play in this… Keep working hard and understand we’re all trying to get to the same place.”
The “Unity in Immunity” panel underscored that promoting vaccine confidence is not just about sharing facts — it’s about listening, building relationships, and empowering communities. As the conversation continues, the panelists encouraged everyone — clinicians, patients, and community members alike — to create ripples of trust and understanding wherever they are.