Authors
As news about COVID-19 vaccines make headlines worldwide, misleading and false claims around vaccines are shared widely on social media platforms.
Recently, a claim that a nurse passed away 17 minutes after taking a trial shot of “Gates Covid19 Vaccine Injection” is being circulated online with a video.
We received this claim more than once on our Whatsapp verification helpline number. It reads, “17 Minutes after Taking a Trial Shot of “Gates Covid19 Vaccine Injection..” a Nurse Passed Away as on Live Video.!!.. கொரோனா… தடுப்பூசி போடப்பட்ட பெண் (நர்ஸ் ) சில நிமிடங்களில் உயிரிழப்பு நேரலை – காணொளி..!!..”
You can see an example from Twitter below.
Fact Check/ Verification
The claim in context refers to Tiffany Dover, a critical care nurse at Catholic Health Initiatives (CHI) Memorial Hospital in Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States.
She was one of the first few individuals to receive the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine at CHI Memorial Hospital earlier this month. During an interview filmed a short while after she received the vaccine, she can be seen lifting her hand to her head and saying that she felt dizzy, before starting to collapse and being lowered to the ground by two doctors.
What’s lesser known is that shortly after this incident, Dover regained stability and told reporters that she’s fine. She also mentioned that “she has a condition that can sometimes cause her to faint when she feels pain,” reported NewsChannel9. Dover explains the same in a video released by WRCB Chattanooga on their Youtube channel.
US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on their website under ‘vaccine safety’ explain that “Fainting, also called syncope, is a temporary loss of consciousness caused by a decreased blood flow to the brain. Although fainting has a variety of possible causes, it is usually triggered by pain or anxiety. Sometimes people faint after vaccination.”
NewsChannel9’s report also includes an image of Dover surrounded by her colleagues showing their support for her.
ON 21 December, CHI Memorial released a video of Dover with her colleagues on their Youtube channel. The video’s caption reads, “We’re pleased to share Tiffany Dover is doing well. Here’s a short video of her today surrounded by her colleagues who all support her.”
We reached out to CHI Memorial for clarification on this claim. In an email response, their communications manager Karen Long said,
“We appreciate the ongoing concern by the community and media. Tiffany and CHI Memorial issued a current video and photograph, on Dec. 21, 2020, of her at the hospital surrounded by nursing leaders, including our Chief Nurse Executive, who support her. Our efforts must now turn to caring for an ever growing number of people in our community hospitalized with COVID-19 and vaccinating our caregivers and support staff.”
This claim has been debunked by other fact-checkers as well.
Conclusion
Tiffany Dover, the CHI Memorial nurse in the video, did not die after she received the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. She is alive and doing well. Online users shared her interview video without proper context.
Result: Misleading
Our Sources
CHI Memorial’s Communications Manager Karen Long
NewsChannel9: https://newschannel9.com/news/coronavirus/first-frontline-workers-in-chattanooga-get-covid-19-vaccine-thursday
WRCB Chattanooga: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tOH7XLHl2mo&feature=youtu.be
US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: https://www.cdc.gov/vaccinesafety/concerns/fainting.html
CHI Memorial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wxGR3y0gE_0
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