Vaccines save lives by protecting people against infectious diseases — polio, influenza, and pneumonia to name a few. Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute (KPWHRI) is working to protect communities through research to continually improve the safety and effectiveness of vaccines for infectious diseases of public health importance.
Central to this work is testing new vaccines against emerging diseases — such as COVID-19. In March 2020, KPWHRI gave the world’s first-ever injection of an investigational vaccine for COVID-19 in a phase 1 clinical trial led by Senior Investigator Lisa A. Jackson, MD, MPH. We continue to be at the forefront of efforts to understand and combat COVID-19. To learn more, see COVID-19 research at KPWHRI.
Successes over 3 decades of KPWHRI vaccine research include:
Our current research projects on vaccines and infectious diseases include:
Sandford R, Yadav R, Noble EK, Sumner K, Joshi D, Tartof SY, Wernli KJ, Martin ET, Gaglani M, Zimmerman RK, Talbot HK, Grijalva CG, Belongia EA, Carlson C, Coughlin M, Flannery B, Pearce B, Rogier E. Antibody response to symptomatic infection with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant viruses, December 2021-June 2022. medRxiv. 2023:2023.11.17.23298700. doi: 10.1101/2023.11.17.23298700. Preprint. PubMed
Daley MF, Reifler LM, Shoup JA, Glanz JM, Naleway AL, Nelson JC, Williams JTB, McLean HQ, Vazquez-Benitez G, Goddard K, Lewin BJ, Weintraub ES, McNeil MM, Razzaghi H, Singleton JA. Racial and ethnic disparities in influenza vaccination coverage among pregnant women in the United States: The contribution of vaccine-related attitudes. Prev Med. 2023 Nov 4;177:107751. doi: 10.1016/j.ypmed.2023.107751. Online ahead of print. PubMed
Ferar K, Hall TO, Crawford DC, Rowley R, Satterfield BA, Li R, Gragert L, Karlson EW, de Andrade M, Kullo IJ, McCarty CA, Kho A, Hayes MG, Ritchie MD, Crane PK, Mirel DB, Carlson C, Connolly JJ, Hakonarson H, Crenshaw AT, Carrell D, Luo Y, Dikilitas O, Denny JC, Jarvik GP, Crosslin DR. Genetic variation in the human leukocyte antigen region confers susceptibility to Clostridioides difficile infection. Sci Rep. 2023;13(1):18532. doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-45649-4. PubMed
Irving SA, Groom HC, Belongia EA, Crane B, Daley MF, Goddard K, Jackson LA, Kauffman TL, Kenigsberg TA, Kuckler L, Naleway AL, Patel SA, Tseng HF, Williams JTB, Weintraub ES. Influenza vaccination coverage among persons ages six months and older in the Vaccine Safety Datalink in the 2017-18 through 2022-23 influenza seasons. Vaccine. 2023 Nov 22;41(48):7138-7146. doi: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2023.10.023. Epub 2023 Oct 20. PubMed
Cash-Goldwasser S, Reingold AL, Luby SP, Jackson LA, Frieden TR. Masks during pandemics caused by respiratory pathogens - evidence and implications for action. JAMA Netw Open. 2023;6(10):e2339443. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.39443. PubMed
Lisa A. Jackson, MD, MPHSenior Investigator |
Jennifer C. Nelson, PhDDirector, Biostatistics; Senior Investigator |
Andrea J. Cook, PhDSenior Biostatistics Investigator |
Sascha Dublin, MD, PhDSenior Investigator |
Onchee Yu, MSPrincipal Collaborative Biostatistician |
Robert D. Wellman, MSPrincipal Collaborative Biostatistician |
Clarissa Hsu, PhDAssociate Investigator |
Brian D. Williamson, PhDAssistant Biostatistics Investigator |
Noorie Hyun, PhDAssociate Biostatistics Investigator |
Pamela A. Shaw, PhD, MSSenior Biostatistics Investigator |
Annie Piccorelli, PhDSenior Collaborative Biostatistician |
Doug Opel, MD, MPH
University of Washington (UW) Department of Bioethics and Humanities; UW Department of Pediatrics; UW Medical Center
John Dunn, MD, MPH
Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Washington
Elizabeth Lin, MD, MPH
Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Washington Family Practice;
Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute