In today’s podcast, Russ talks with Dr. Dave Traver and Dr. Dieter Bruno about the importance of understanding and inclusivity in the conversation surrounding COVID-19 vaccinations. On May 15 and June 12, Hope Technology School is partnering with the Bay Area Christian Church and Sequoia Hospital to provide COVID-19 vaccines for people 12+ who may require a more sensory-friendly environment.

This clinic was developed by medical professionals, special education teachers, and parents to provide a calm, safe, and inclusive atmosphere in which anyone who’d like to get vaccinated can do so free from barriers that might be present at a typical vaccination site.

This sensory-friendly environment includes:

• Short wait times
• Minimal transitions
• No crowds
• Visual aids
• Social stories
• Quiet areas 

Go to bacc.cc/clinic to learn more and to sign up.

Dr. Dave Traver earned his undergraduate degree at Boston University, and was accepted early into the modular medical curriculum as a commonwealth fund scholar at Boston University School of Medicine. After receiving a Doctor of Medicine, he got his internship and residency at Boston City Hospital (now known as Boston Medical Center). Dr. Traver has demonstrated a heart for those less fortunate, serving as physician for various international relief efforts throughout Asia including the Philippines, Vietnam, and Cambodia. In Phnom Penh, he and his wife started the internationally acclaimed national teaching hospital, the Sihanouk Hospital Center of Hope. 

Back in the states, Dr. Traver worked as volunteer faculty for Stanford University School of Medicine, and during this time worked in Pervasive Developmental Disorder, Neuropsychiatry, and ADHD clinics, becoming familiar with treatment and management of people with Autism Spectrum Disorder and ADHD. He has worked with hundreds of patients, many of which have these diagnoses.

Dr. Dieter Bruno is the Chief Medical Officer at Sequoia Hospital. He was a mentor and professor at Duke University in the Department of Urology. Dr. Bruno has a clinical focus in male and female incontinence, advanced endoscopic stone manipulation, advanced laparoscopic and robotic techniques, and is responsible for beginning the prostate cancer brachytherapy program and the urologic robotic program at East Carolina University School of Medicine. He is credited with performing the first daVinci urologic robotic surgical procedure as well as the second daVinci robotic prostatectomy in the state of North Carolina. Prior to being the Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Bruno was the Advanced Robotics Surgical Techniques Head of Surgery at Sequoia Hospital. He has performed hundreds of robotic prostatectomies and has proctored numerous urologists in robotic techniques in North Carolina and California, and currently teaches courses for Intuitive Surgical.

Resources

1. Dr. Fauci – to reach the unvaccinated we need Trusted Messengers/On the Ground Leaders
2. FDA Authorizes Pfizer-BioNTech Vaccine for Children 12-15
3. Johnson and Johnson and Potential Risks (Scientific America)
4. The U.S. Has the Shots it needs, but Vaccine Doubt is Prolonging the Pandemic (Bloomberg article)
5. Hope Technology School
6. Sequoia Hospital

Sensory Friendly Vaccine Clinic sign up

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