COVID-19
COVID-19 TASK FORCE
Leaders from UAB Medicine and the UAB Comprehensive Transplant Institute ( CTI ) have actively contributed to policies and protocols related to COVID-19 and the vaccine , both at UAB and at the national level .
Vineeta Kumar , MD , professor in the UAB Division of Nephrology , serves as chair of the COVID-19 Taskforce Transplant Subcommittee for the American Society of Nephrology ( ASN ), and she ’ s a member of the American Society of Transplantation ( AST ) COVID-19 Operational Issues Taskforce . Throughout the pandemic , Dr . Kumar has been working closely with Anoma Nellore , MD , UAB Medicine associate professor of Infectious Diseases and associate medical director of the Transplant / Immunocompromised ID Service . Their collaboration led to a variety of online materials and guidelines designed to keep patients and providers better informed of the transplantation-related issues surrounding COVID-19 and the vaccine .
At UAB Medicine , Drs . Kumar and Nellore and other CTI leaders formed a COVID-19 task force early in the pandemic that created :
• Educational materials and guidance related to COVID-19 infection , treatment , and vaccination , including an FAQ document on safer living practices for transplant patients
• Provider materials aimed at MDs and APPs
• Scripting for staff on how to respond to complex patient questions about COVID-19
Dr . Kumar says members from both the AST and the ASN “ had a seat at the table ” in helping shape CDC guidelines related to the COVID-19 vaccine . Through the AST and the ASN , Dr . Kumar helped create :
• Online-based COVID-19 surge toolkits
• A compassion fatigue learning module
• Provider and patient education materials
• Guidelines for living organ donors
“ It takes so much to get a patient to the point of transplant , so we wanted to make sure that both patients and providers are fully equipped to deal with the complexities of the virus and the vaccine ” Dr . Kumar says . “ This is especially important given that the immune response to the COVID vaccine isn ’ t as robust for transplant patients as it is for the general population .”
VACCINATION GUIDANCE
Organ transplant recipients are at high risk for COVID-19 due to the immunosuppressant drugs they take and other factors . Throughout the pandemic , the UAB Comprehensive Transplant Institute carefully monitored vaccination guidance and recommended vaccination for our patients when it became available to them in early 2021 .
In August 2021 , the U . S . Food & Drug Administration released guidance recommending an additional dose of the COVID-19 vaccine for organ transplant recipients , to be administered 28 days after being fully vaccinated with the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine and ideally of the same brand received originally . The timing of this additional dose for organ transplant recipients – 28 days vs . 6-8 months for most of the population – is intended to help “ sleepy ” immune systems better defend against COVID-19 and its effects if contracted . For that reason , it is considered an additional dose rather than a booster .
For patients who received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine , currently there is no FDA recommendation for an additional dose , but the agency is actively working to provide guidance on this issue . Organ transplant recipients should note that the additional dose recommendation does not necessarily apply to their loved ones , unless they are immunosuppressed or meet other specific criteria .
For more details on vaccination guidance for transplant patients , as well as answers to frequently asked questions about COVID-19 , please visit uabmedicine . org / transplant .
COVID-19 uabmedicine . org / refertransplant 3