X-ray technologist dies after receiving second dose of COVID-19 vaccine
A California x-ray technologist died recently after receiving his second dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine, according to published reports.
Tim Zook was brimming with optimism back on Jan. 5, sharing a picture of his vaccination card and bandaged arm. But the 60-year-old rad tech later started experiencing trouble breathing and an upset stomach. A COVID test came up false, but his condition worsened, leading to Zook being induced into a comma and placed on a ventilator Jan. 7 at UC Irvine Medical Center.
After several “code blue” alerts, Zook died on Jan. 9, the Orange County Register reported. The county coroner said the cause of death is currently inconclusive, with toxicology screenings expected to take months. He was slightly overweight and suffered from high blood pressure, managing the latter with medications for years, his wife told the newspaper. But the sexagenarian was otherwise healthy and had never been hospitalized, Rochelle Zook said.
His family is seeking answers from Pfizer and the government but also urging others to receive their shot in the meantime.
“The message is, be safe, take the vaccine—but the officials need to do more research. We need to know the cause,” Rochelle Zook told the Register. “The vaccines need to be as safe as possible. Every life matters.”
Zook had worked at South Coast Global Medical Center in Santa Ana, California, where he often imaged COVID-19 patients and passionately urged others to embrace safety measures such as masks. He was remembered as caring, generous and deeply loving of his family.
A 56-year-old obstetrician and gynecologist in Florida also died on Jan. 3, weeks after receiving his second Pfizer shot. The drug maker, CDC and Food and Drug Administration are all looking at closer at these deaths, with officials emphasizing that these instances are rare. Read more on the incident below.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.