Ohio University helps vaccinate students and residents

Simar Kalkat reads information about the vaccine before receiving it. Photo by Emily Zeiler.

Even with snags in the process after the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) recommendation to pause the Johnson & Johnson single-dose COVID-19 vaccine, Ohio University has vaccinated a number of students through its vaccination clinics.

Ohio U worked with the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) to run the clinics throughout multiple southeast Ohio counties. As of April 19, according to data from the ODH COVID-19 Vaccine Dashboard, 22,799 people have started or completed their vaccine in Athens County, which is equivalent to 34.9% of the county’s population.

Student vaccination clinic

Student vaccination clinics started at Heritage Hall on April 7. Pfizer two-dose vaccines were administered at the first two clinics April 7 and April 9 due to a supply shortage of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

On April 12, the university began administering the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. According to Dr. Gillian Ice, special assistant to the president for public health operations, the Heritage Hall clinic administered 349 doses of the single-dose shot April 12.

When the FDA and Gov. Mike DeWine asked COVID-19 vaccine providers to halt inoculations with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, the university announced that the clinic would go back to offering the Pfizer vaccine.

No appointments were canceled as a result of the switch according to an email sent to students, according to Ohio U.

Students who received the Pfizer vaccine will need to return to Heritage Hall or another vaccine provider to receive the second dose approximately 21 days after receiving the first.

Ice said the Athens City-County Health Department is prepared to handle up to 700 students each day of the clinic. Closer to 300 to 400 appointments, however, have been fulfilled each day.

The last student clinic will be held April 23 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. It will be a walk-in clinic, no registration needed.

Mobile vaccination clinic

The university partnered with the Ohio Department of Health to provide a mobile vaccination clinic to serve communities around southeast Ohio.

Clinics are scheduled at various locations in Lawrence, Morgan, Meigs, Vinton, Perry and Washington counties during April and May.

Ohio U’s mobile clinic is one of 15 mass vaccination sites announced by DeWine on March 5.

According to a press release, the clinics work to ensure equitable access for underserved communities and high-risk residents who could be disproportionately impacted by COVID-19.

“The Ohio University mobile clinic was an established clinic and registered vaccine provider, and is already well-known to the community,” Alicia Shoults from the Ohio Department of Health said. “With the clinic’s proven experience and reach in southeast Ohio, it was a natural fit.”

The mobile mass vaccination sites have the capacity to administer 250+ doses at each clinic, Sherri Oliver, the executive director of Community Health Programs at Ohio U, said. At the first three locations, 214 total vaccine doses were administered.

Mobile mass clinics were administering the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. When the FDA announced the pause on Johnson & Johnson inoculations, all mobile clinics were canceled through April 20.

Oliver said assistance was provided to patients that were interested in obtaining an appointment to get the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines.

Upcoming dates for the mass vaccination clinics and registration information can be found on the Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine website.