Tiffany Dover, RN, did not intend to become a figurehead of the anti-vaccine movement when she received her first shot via a livestream in 2020, but the internet had very different plans, NBC News reported April 10.
Ms. Dover was among the first front-line workers to receive the COVID-19 vaccine on Dec. 17, 2020, at CHI Memorial Hospital in Chattanooga, Tenn., where she worked as a nurse manager. Shortly after receiving the vaccine, Ms. Dover fainted in front of reporters. She was quickly revived and interviewed by a reporter, where she said she was prone to fainting. The incident was livestreamed on Facebook by several local news stations, and within 24 hours Ms. Dover was trending on every social media platform.
Conspiracy theories quickly bubbled up about her being dead, and that the hospital and drugmakers had replaced her with a body double. Ms. Dover said she and her family members were hounded on social media, people showed up to her house and she received death rates after the incident.
Ms. Dover said she went quiet on social media after the incident at the instruction of her employer. However, CHI Memorial Hospital has repeatedly denied knowledge of any directive asking her not to speak out or post on social media. Ms. Dover has since left her job at CHI Memorial.
Now, more than two years later, Ms. Dover is speaking out.
"People have said I'm responsible for people not getting the vaccine," she told NBC News. "That was hard to process. If people are using my name and my story to say, 'Don't get the vaccine,' how many people didn't receive it because of me? That's hard."
"Yes, I did pass out. This could be a side effect. You can pass out from receiving a vaccine, but that's OK because it can also save your life. So it's worth it," she said.
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