Claire Pedersen was a sophomore at UNC-Chapel Hill when the COVID-19 pandemic upended daily life, forcing students into remote learning with stay-at-home orders. Meanwhile, her mother Susan Pedersen, the Clinical Director of the UNC Clinical Trials Unit (CTU) at the Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases was working to support the staff responsible for launching a surge of urgent COVID-19 research. With laboratory services stretched thin and concerns mounting, an idea came to mind. Perhaps, her daughter could lend a hand.
“There was an overwhelming amount of work to do,” Pedersen recalled. “The CTU, which had traditionally focused on HIV prevention and treatment research, had quickly pivoted to support COVID-19 trials and testing. It was all hands on deck.”
At her mother’s suggestion, Claire began helping Amy Loftis, the CTU’s lab manager, who was managing an enormous workload during the early days of the pandemic. “My mom volunteered me to help Amy, who was busier than one person could possibly imagine,” Pedersen said. “I helped her pack participant kits for the Ridgeback trial.”
The CTU’s first COVID study with Ridgeback Biotherapeutics investigated the antiviral Molnupiravir. Vaccine studies followed, including the Moderna and Novavax trials.
“I was glad to have something to do and to be able to talk to people who had done some interesting things.”
After a week, Pedersen was asked to do more, which was followed by the offer of a full-time position over the summer working as a research assistant, helping Loftis organize supplies for the ever-changing clinic and lab needs. And there was still more. Pedersen helped Loftis build a diagnostic lab in a POD, transform a kidney dialysis truck into a research clinic, and eventually, utilize the medical school simulation clinic for monoclonal antibody work. Then Fall came, and the reopening of campus led to a rapid increase in COVID cases, returning classes to remote learning. That’s when Dr. Myron Cohen and Dr. Joe Eron approached several highly specialized people, including Loftis, about building and running a COVID testing lab.
“Amy asked if I would help her, and then eventually it became evident that I was needed more in the surveillance lab than in the CTU.”
This included education for the campus community. In a video for the Carolina Together Testing Program, Pedersen demonstrated how to self swab.
Supporting Carolina’s Frontline of Defense
Carolina’s COVID-19 surveillance lab opened in early 2021, built in record time to bring students back to campus safely after the holidays. Pedersen transitioned to the COVID lab, working seven days a week to get the lab up and running, also supporting Dr. Amir Barzin, assistant professor of family medicine.
“During this time, there weren’t enough people to do what needed to be done. One night, I was helping with inventory, and we were all prepping test kits, including Dr. Barzin.”
Pedersen continued to work part-time for the remainder of her undergraduate education while learning from Loftis about Ebola, and her work with Dr. Billy Fischer to design and build a lab infrastructure in Liberia. She also learned about research excellence and how Loftis provided support for project sites around the world–including Malawi.
UNC Project-Malawi
In May 2023, Pedersen graduated with a major in global studies. She went to Malawi to work in clinical trials, and right away she connected with Malawi’s friendly culture and hospitality, a country known as the “Warm Heart of Africa.” Investigators at the Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases founded UNC Project-Malawi nearly 30 years ago.
Pedersen played an important role with a pneumonia study in the pediatric ward, witnessing the harsh realities of healthcare in resource-limited settings, as well as the remarkable resilience.
“We were working with very sick patients,” said Pedersen recalling workers who managed complex cases with remarkable calm.
“It was jarring to see children in conditions that would be unimaginable in the United States—multiple patients in one bed, tangled IV lines, limited resources. I saw medicine practiced in a completely different way, and this inspired me.”
Pedersen also worked at the Bwaila STI clinic, seeing firsthand how infrastructure can be transformative for healthcare. This was before the new clinic was built, representing hope—with dedicated lab spaces, conference rooms, and staff facilities.
“Before the new clinic was built, 60 people would fill a room the size of a conference room. There were only three or four exam rooms, and one data room with binders stacked from floor to ceiling. The single toilet only worked half the time.”
Pedersen started studying for the MCAT, inspired by Malawi and an experience that was more than professional—it was deeply personal. She extended her initial one-year commitment to 18 months, living in the UNC Project-Malawi guest house.
“I grew really close to everyone at the guest house,” Pedersen said. “They all became my family.”
Next Big Adventure
In the end, what started as her mom’s suggestion to “lend a hand” opened a window into the world of clinical trials and healthcare in sub-Saharan Africa. But Malawi not only shaped her professional trajectory, it’s also where she met her husband, a German soccer coach who at the time was working with Ascent Soccer, based in Lilongwe.
As Pedersen starts her next big adventure in July–medical school at the UNC School of Medicine-her journey demonstrates how unexpected opportunities can transform and inspire meaningful global health work.
“I want to practice pediatric medicine on a global scale,” she said. “The infectious disease physicians here are the ones I look up to—they practice medicine exactly how I want to.”