CARECEN partners with Howard University and Novavax for COVID-19 Vaccine Phase 3 Clinical Trial
CARECEN is a member Community Advisory Board of Howard University Phase 3COVID-19 clinical trial site to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of a new coronavirus vaccine developed by Maryland-biotechnology company, Novavax. CARECEN will focus of educating the Latino community on the importance of participating in medical trials and help recruit for the Phase 3 trial.
“We believe that diverse participation in COVID-19 trials will go a long way toward encouraging potentially life-saving vaccination when it is available,” said President Wayne A. I. Frederick, M.D., MBA, a practicing surgeon at Howard University Hospital. “Along with following COVID-19 prevention guidelines, effective vaccination is the most promising approach to mitigating and ending the pandemic. Our goal through participation is to ensure a safe and effective product is developed to address the needs of Black, Latino, and other minority communities.”
Along with other drug manufacturers, Novavax has been leading the way in the development of a safe and effective vaccine option to help end the COVID-19 pandemic.. This clinical trial expects to include proportional representation among diverse populations most vulnerable to COVID-19 distributed across race/ethnicity, age and those living with co-morbidities.
Howard University’s involvement as a clinical trial site was strongly motivated by concerns about Black, Latino, and other vulnerable populations. These groups have been especially at risk of contracting COVID-19 and dying at disproportionately higher rates. While these groups have suffered the most during the pandemic, to date they have not been well represented in the vaccine trials.
Recruitment for participation in the clinical trial through the Howard University location is beginning now. Howard will manage the trial at the Clinical Research Unit located at Howard University Hospital or through the Howard mobile unit that will be deployed to various community locations to enhance access. Volunteers can register to participate in vaccine trials at the national
website www.preventCOVID.org or the Howard University Vaccine Study Site and indicate “HOWU” as the site-code in the registration form. Interested volunteers can also call the national registry site at 1-866-288-1919 and request information on the Howard University-managed clinical trial.
