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Don't be discouraged by obstacles and challenges. There are substantial challenges to being a Black or Brown person in medicine. These challenges stem from the systems of oppression in our society that we live in and the lack of cultural awareness, diversity, and inclusivity in the field in general. It is important to not let the weight of this discourage us.

It's high time for systems to demonstrate accountability and to do what is in the best interests of the many and not the few.

Chris T. Pernell, MD, MPH, FACPM, public health physician and social change agent delivered a rousing keynote address at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center's annual Black History Month celebration held on February 28th.

"The science is there. We know that children in that age group have the same... It's called immuno-bridging. So, the endpoint of the trials around children were different in that we wanted to know if they produced the same antibody levels or antibody response: does it have the same immunogenicity that it does in the older age group?"

"Public data have suggested that approvals from federal agencies and vaccine mandates coupled together are likely to pack a powerful punch. It's become clear that more must be done to reach a critical level of community and population vaccination rates to come out of the COVID-19 pandemic," Dr. Chris T. Pernell, a public health expert and a fellow of the American College of Preventive Medicine, told Healthline.

So you're vaccinated. Great! This doctor says a multi-layered approach to protect yourself and others from COVID-19 is still necessary.

Amplify their voice and share power with trusted messengers - no physician is an island to themselves. Institutions and systems demonstrate accountability by sharing power and influence with credible messengers in the community and using these community and people assets in care navigation and treatment validation. Practitioners in health care must recognize the power of narrative medicine, storytelling and lived experiences in driving self and collective efficacy, value and trust.

Despite the differences in professional roles and organizations in which preventive medicine physicians serve, there is one unifying passion - prevention. Recently, I had the occasion to meet one of our passionate members, Dr. Chris Pernell, who has been quite active in the media sharing her story about volunteering in the Moderna vaccine trial and losing her father last year to COVID-19. During our conversation, she shared her drive to make a difference using her skills, knowledge and expertise.

We've all been affected in some way or another, but a doctor we've recently been able to connect with has a much deeper, more personal experience with this rampaging virus. Dr. Chris Pernell, MD, MPH, FACPM, is a public health physician and American College of Preventive Medicine Fellow who lost her father to COVID-19 just shy of a year ago.

Essential workers like doctors haven't been able to pause to honor our dead or to give voice to the unnatural mass casualty of the pandemic.

We know who's still skeptical. And we know how to reach them.

Black Americans need more than vaccines. We need an overhaul of a broken health care system.

The COVID-19 death rate for Black people in the U.S. is nearly triple that of white Americans, with one in 1,000 Black Americans dying from the disease. An effective vaccine is on the horizon, but there's ongoing concern over whether people will trust the vaccine. Black people make up 13% of the U.S. population but only account for 5% of the vaccine trial participants.

In March, Chris Pernell of Montclair was just a few months into her position as a public health official at University Hospital in Newark when she found herself facing an enormous public health crisis: The hospital was "bursting at the seams" with Black and Latino patients infected with COVID-19.

Research that fails to include a diverse and representative population cannot be generalized or considered effective in all relevant groups.

My dad told me: 'Follow the data. It will lead you to the answers.' Daddy, not only am I following the data, I've become the data.

My father is one of the too many people the pandemic has killed. On April 13, in a hospital merely four miles from the New Jersey hospital where I work, my dad, Timothy L. Pernell Sr., slipped away. A heroic man who seemingly could survive anything, including the Jim Crow South and the weight of chronic conditions, he could not withstand Covid's blow. I drove my car across a city trying to reach him in time to say a final goodbye, but he died as I parked and turned off the ignition.

Dr. Chris T. Pernell, once a candidate for office as an advocate for school children in Newark, who works as a physician at University Hospital in Newark, condemned coronavirus positive President Donald Trump's parade outside Walter Reed.

While the nation anxiously awaits a COVID-19 vaccine, surveys have found many Americans are wary of getting it if one were to become available soon. In particular, many Black Americans are skeptical given the history of medical scientists subjecting them to experiments without their knowledge or permission.

Chris Pernell's family has been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. She lost her father to the coronavirus. Her sister, a breast cancer survivor, is a "long-hauler" - still fighting various effects of the virus many weeks after having it. Pernell, 44, also knows that as a Black person, she's at a higher risk for COVID-19, as two-thirds of people infected are from communities of color. So when the Montclair, New Jersey, resident signed up to volunteer for one of the clinical trials of a vaccine against the virus, it was personal.