Internal Medicine Providers Lead the Charge in Vaccinating Utah Patients
We have come a long way since March 2020. From the first case of COVID on campus, to transitioning to working from home, to preparing for surges of hospitalizations, it seemed that the pandemic had its grasp firmly on Utah with no end in sight. Thankfully, the end is now closer in sight than ever thanks to the recent announcement that all Utahns over the age of 16 will be eligible to sign up for a vaccine at the vaccination clinics within University Hospital, and South Jordan and Redwood Health Centers.
When University of Utah Health sent a call for volunteers for these patient vaccination clinics, several faculty, APCs and trainees from the Department of Internal Medicine stepped up to offer their time and services to ensure these clinics were properly staffed.
Andrea Schindler, Director of Outpatient Advanced Practice Clinicians, was among the first of Internal Medicine employees who volunteered their time to vaccination efforts. Drawn to work with the culturally diverse patient population of Redwood Health Center, Schindler recognized the numerous challenges in the patient-provider relationship that could potentially hinder patients from wanting to receive a vaccine, such as language barriers, socioeconomic hardships, health disparities, and trust issues.
“I wanted to participate as a volunteer to protect my community. Many of my patients live in this community which has been hit particularly hard by the virus. I wanted to contribute to our outreach efforts in getting one of our most vulnerable communities vaccinated,” Schindler says. “While I expected a variety of trust issues and misperceptions about the vaccine, I saw this as an opportunity to connect with people, reassure them, and build trust so that they experience the commitment our organization has to protecting the health and safety of our patients and communities.”
Trainees also made the effort to volunteer, with PGY-3 Dr. Alex Blaty and Chief Medicine Resident Dr. Matthew Christensen serving as vaccinators and post-vaccination observers in the University Hospital vaccine clinic. Though they were working in a new clinic alongside a completely new staff of like-minded volunteers, both Blaty and Christensen felt no confusion as to their role in the clinic and felt welcomed by their new teammates.
“The clinic organizers were great and told us exactly where to go and what to do,” Christensen explains. “I worked alongside two other providers in the observation area. Most of my time was spent directing people on where to sit and to set a self-timer for the observation period. The patients were very gracious and the energy in the room was fantastic. It was fun to see people taking their vaccine selfies!”
Volunteers note the wide variety of patients who graciously received their vaccines. Schindler recalls one woman who spoke little English, but showed her photos of her 15-year-old niece who had her quinceañera in Mexico City; getting the vaccine means she can now safely go visit her in the summer. Another man with Cystic Fibrosis was grateful to be getting the vaccine due to high risk of serious illness should be become infected, and Dr. Emily Spivak, an Associate Professor in the Division of Infectious Diseases, remembers a young woman with Downs Syndrome who came in with her caretaker to receive their vaccine.
“They told me it was their first time in public in an entire year,” she says. “The sacrifices they and other Utahns have made over the last year to keep themselves and others safe is truly impressive and is honestly a little emotionally overwhelming. We constantly hear about the bad when dealing with COVID-19, but there really is so much good out there.”
Not only do vaccine clinic volunteers have the opportunity to meet with, educate and vaccinate gracious patients, but they also have the unique networking opportunity to work with staff and providers from other departments. Schindler recalls meeting her new team, all deployed from other locations in order to staff the Redwood vaccine clinic, including one new RN graduate who had just landed his first job at U of U Health and two retired RNs who re-entered the workforce to help with COVID testing and vaccine administration.
There are still many patient vaccine volunteer opportunities for providers, non-clinical roles and patient relationship specialists. The Department of Internal Medicine encourages all faculty, staff, APCs and trainees to consider volunteering as we continue to care for our COVID patients during this exciting time. By volunteering a small amount of time, you can help bring an end to the pandemic, and possibly save someone’s life. And, as Dr. Blaty adds, “Volunteering is a lot of fun too!”
For all patient vaccine volunteer opportunities, please head to the Pulse (University login required) Patient Vaccination sign-up sheet. This site will be updated weekly with new sign-up links and other important details for volunteers.