Diary Prequel Package — page 373

(placebo) arm and wants to do a Stepped-Wedge trial of sequentially vaccinated different cohorts without the simultaneous double blind control group. This evening went to the Annual Friends of cancer Research Awards Ceremony on the roof of the Hay-Adams Hotel. Gov. Deval Patrick of Massachusetts and Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana received awards. Had good conversation with Gov. Patrick. Sept. 24, 2014 - On the last Secretary's call, Burwell tasked me to get the HHS team together and fashion out a consensus about the way forward following ending of phase 1 vaccine trial at NIH. I had long conversation with Tom Frieden this AM and he is starting to come around. Seems he will be OK with an RCT simultaneously done with a Stepped-Wedge Trial. I arranged a conference call at 5:30 PM with me, Tom, Nicki Lurie, Peggy Hamburg, Lu Borio, and Anne Schuchat. We came to agreement that we will do the two trials (RCT + Stepped Wedge) simultaneously. CDC (Anne and Tom) feel that the RCT may be so difficult to implement that the Stepped-Wedge approach might give us some information, while the RCT could fail. Cliff and I feel just the opposite. However, in order to get things moving, we came to a compromise. I will report this to the HHS Secretary's call tomorrow. Continue to have press interest: Bloomberg News TV; WTOP Radio; pre-show interview with CBS 60 Minutes for future show. Sept. 25, 2014 - Did MSNBC this AM as a commentary immediately following the POTUS statement before the UN on Ebola. He gave his speech and then I was asked to comment. Of course, I supported what he said (since he said the right things - all nations must pitch in). Sept. 26, 2014 - Learned at 4:00 PM this afternoon that the NIH Clinical Center will be accepting for observation in our special studies unit an American physician who had a moderate risk exposure to Ebola in Sierra Leone (clean needle puncture through a contaminated glove). We scrambled around over the evening preparing press statements and plans. Patient will arrive on Sunday, Sept. 28. Sept. 27, 2014 - Did FOX News and CNN today (Saturday) on regular Ebola issues. Also, much press coming in since the press release went out today on the patient arriving from Sierra Leone. In this regard, I did CBS Radio News; NPR background; WUSA - Channel 9 TV; various print outlets. Likely much more tomorrow. Sept. 28, 2014 - Patient arrived this afternoon (~3:00 PM) from Sierra Leone. State Department arranged his transportation. He was given the VSV vaccine as a postexposure prophylaxis, which neither Cliff nor I would necessarily have done since it induces a fever and can complicate matters. Indeed, he developed a fever 24 hours after receiving the VSV vaccine. The Patient, Dr. Lewis Rubinson, is admitted to the Special Studies Unit of the Clinical Center on the 5th Floor. Very little of the circus that we saw when Dr. Brantley and Nancy Rightbol were admitted to Emory, i.e. no helicopters or TV trucks. I did do a few interviews (some pre-scheduled even before the patient was