MEHBUB KAPADIA — The Master Vaccinator

By Jatinder Singh Bedi, Chief Editor, Hello NRI

CHICAGO – In community, utter 'Covid-19,' and ‘Mehbub Kapadia’ will resonate. Right, left, or center, you find Dr Mehbub Kapadia vaccinating people. He has carried out 75000 tests and vaccinated over 100,000 people ever since he started this endeavor late last year. He is owner of the 30-year-old Prism Holistic Care, Chicago’s leading entity.

“People won’t even give me a space for when I started,” Dr Kapadia reveals. “I got least support from anywhere,” Dr Kapadia sadly adds. And this makes his vaccination journey really engrossing! “On 05 August 2020, Realtor Mark Ahmed graciously lent me a road-side open corner space. …free of cost! …I then, went to Home Depot and bought a tent,” he recalls.

He, infact, was at his retirement siesta. Vaccination drive resurrected him. He then emerged a larger-than-life Mehbub Kapadia. A loving father, Mehbub crowns his sons Zul and Sameer for this omnipresent well-oiled machine.

I called Zul.

Zul Kapadia has been a student of the Master in Public Administration at the Harvard University in Boston. There, at the Harvard Innovative Lab, Zul Kapadia developed a well-tested tested operational technology for mass coved testing and vaccination. Harvard University acknowledged this model. “My father has a 30-year-old family medical practice; and I had this Harvard tested technology for Vaccine dispensation. I felt this one plus one would make it eleven,” explains Zul Kapadia.

It did.

“That way, Chicagoland vaccination drive is a father-son effort, I must say,” Zul Kapadia defines. “My father is so popular and extremely well connected in the community. He ought to lead it. I joined him too!” Zul adds. Our technology driven HIPPA-compliant model is culturally friendly, responds to hotspots, and accurately enables real-time data analysis, Zul explains.

Dr Mehbub Kapadia recalls that first day. It was in a road-side tent. In bad weather day; and extremely slow. They started with PCR testing. That led to several community partnerships. “Now that the people got the wind of it, the fourth day’s footfall was like “wild fire,” he puts it.

A senior member of the community, Dr Kapadia comes from India’s Ismaili subethnicity. This fact ends there and then. Thereafter, he is up with open arms and open heart. “Jatinder, we’ve visited communities much beyond the NRIs,” Mehbub Kapadia stresses. He has multiple examples to cite. Ismaili Centers apart, he inoculated people irrespective of caste color and creed: Sikhs, Muslims, Hindus, Christians, Blacks, Hispanics, Chinese, Whites and so on. He has gone to the far off places like Dopson, Rockford, Cicero Town, Little Village, China Town, deep South and West Chicago, Kane County, McHenry County, Cobden, Cairo, and where-not. “We have vaccinated people at the farms, in the factories, or anywhere we find big groups,” says Dr Kapadia. He has done over 160 vaccination drives so far! In such huge drive, Mehbub has had some hair-raising experiences too! “One individual dispensing to some senior citizens even took my software away, unethically, and that too with stealth,” Dr Kapadia discloses.

Dr Mehbub Kapadia performint the Covid-19 Test at the Western & Peterson Parking Lot where he first started with a tent.

Trashing the hawkish religious fault-lines, Mehbub Kapdia went on to vaccinate people at the Temples, Gurudwara and Mosques alike.

I met him at Chicago's Jain Temple. There he vaccinated 1007 individuals; and another 1110 at a facility next-door, and, as low as 31 too.

Holding a megaphone, mask-clad, stocky Dr Mehbub Kapadia stood making announcements. He was at the center of a big spacious hall. Socially distanced chairs surrounded him. On these sat Chicago citizens waiting for the vaccination dose; some first, others second.

Those not here, waited in a very long queue outside in the parking lot. As I parked, one Mr Syed asked me: “How do I get registered for a walk-in appointment?” Before I could even reply temple’s guide jumped in to help Mr Syed out. Such were the seamless arrangement.

Dr Mehbub Kapadia: “Jatinder, we’ve visited communities much beyond the NRIs. … We are the success story of the US Government health agencies!”

Ismaili Centers apart, he inoculated people irrespective of caste color and creed: Sikhs, Muslims, Hindus, Christians, Blacks, Hispanics, Chinese, Whites and so on.

He has gone to the far off places like Dopson, Rockford, Cicero Town, Little Village, China Town, deep South and West Chicago, Kane County, McHenry County, Cobden, Cairo, and where-not.

“We’ve hired 300 people, and trained them. 90 percent of our professionals are from minority communities. At any location, we have an on-site physician, emergency medical technicians, and nurses.

“Our multilingual staff can speak 6 languages. We have interpreters too! We are equipped with full medical infrastructure to dispense the services. This includes ability to securely transport the vaccine, procure self-injecting needles, liquid gel bandaids, etc. We have the capacity to refrigerate half-a-million vaccine doses under controlled environment,” Dr Kapadia informed. It incurs me a mammoth monthly expenditure, he added.

Dr Mehbub Kapadia (center) with his inoculation team.

“Combined, we handle one million doses of Pfizer, Moderna, and the Johnson & Johnson.  Still we are always trying hard to keep up with demand. People prefer Pfizer. It is due to Pfizer’s aggressive branding. Otherwise, all the three are as good,” Kapadia says. All prevent loss of life and severe hospitalization, he adds.

Our vaccination detachment is fully equipped with hospital based ambulatory cart; IV fluids, Oxygen tanks, and complete protocol for absolute emergency alongwith trained staff. God forbid, if there is an emergency, we can handle that too. We have a stand-by EPI Pen that has so far been used only twice. “I established this complete platform in just 4 months’ time and with my own investment,” Dr Mehbub Kapadia prides.

All said and done: “we are the success story of the US Government health agencies,” Dr Kapadia quips with pride. But he does not forget acknowledging the support of some prominent state health officials who has been his backbone in this endeavor. He names a few: Dr Tariq Bhatt, Dr Ted, Omayara, Dr Arnold Damen, Dr Ezike, Mitsy, Veronica; and above all the Governor of Illinois, JB Pritzker.

Kapdia Model brings happiness to all. Many small community groups have sought his assistance. “My doors are open to everyone. To me it’s about helping mankind get rid of this deadly virus,” benevolent Mehboob Kapadia concludes.